_101 CINS101例宫颈上皮内瘤变中子课件.ppt

Neutrons 101 Properties of Neutrons What is a neutron? The neutron is a subatomic particle with no net electric charge. Nucleus Neutrons are usually bound (via strong nuclear force) in atomic nuclei. Nuclei consist of protons and neutrons—both known as nucleons. The number of protons determines the element the number of neutrons determines the isotope, e.g. 15N and 14N have 7p and 8n and 7n respectively. Instability of free neutron and mass Free neutrons are unstable; they undergo b-decay, lifetime ~ 885.7 ± 0.8 s. They cannot be stored for long free! n0 → p+ + e? + νe Mass is slightly larger than that of a proton Neutrons have a spin Spin, s, is a quantum number: neutrons are spin-half, s=1/2 Angular momentum Particles with angular momentum have a magnetic moment, ? Electrons have a spin too. Orbital and spin (s = 1/2) angular momentum give rise to moments and magnetism Neutron and electron moments can interact – neutrons are sensitive to magnetic moments in solids! Characterizing Neutrons By…. Neutron Sources a-particles with light elements Neutrons are produced when a-particles hit several low-Z isotopes including those of Be, C, O. As an example, a representative a-Be neutron source produces ~30 neutrons for every million a-particles. e.g., PuBe. Fission Reactor U235 + n (thermal) ~2 MeV neutrons produced Fission neutrons move at ~7% of the speed of light Moderated (thermal) neutrons move at ~8 times the speed of sound. This is around 7700 times slower! Spallation Source Spallation=“blowing chunks” (p,n) hydride ion (H-) source ? proton accelerators ? targets ? moderators ? instruments Moderation/Slowing-down-neutrons as particles (“gas”) Maxwellian Distribution of velocities of particles as f(T) neutrons behave like a gas. Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution-the most probable speed distribution in a collisionally-dominated system consisting of a large number of non-interacting particles. describes the neutron spectrum to a good approximation (ign