Data Processing for the SNS EQ-SANS Diffractometer
- ORNL
The scattering data on the Extended Q-Range Small Angle Scattering Diffractometer at the Spallation Neutron Source are stored as neutron events. Each event has two parts: the time of fight of the detected neutron, and an identifier for the neutron's location on the detector. In addition, each event is associated with the source pulse from which the neutron is originated. Due to the high neutron beam intensity at the SNS, the size of the stored data files can easily exceed several Gigabytes. Processing and reducing these data can be very time consuming. The standard way of handling the data at the SNS has been to first transform the data into histograms. On the EQ-SANS, these histograms are further processed into intensity I vs. neutron momentum transfer Q files, I(Q). For a large data, the whole process can take many minutes to hours to complete, which severely limits the turnaround time of an experiment. Experimenters often want to reduce the data quickly and depending on the result, make decisions on the setup of next measurements. They may also need to reduce the data using different inputs and conditions. In this work, we present the implementation of a fast data processing scheme for the EQ-SANS diffractometer. The scattering data are processed directly from neutron event files into I(Q) or other desired formats, greatly reducing the needed computation time. Further speed gains are obtained by the implementation of parallel computing under the Message Passing Interface framework. Most data on the EQ-SANS can now be handled in mere seconds. The process is highly automated. All relevant experimental information that is stored in instrument configuration files are read and processed. In addition, the new implementation is highly flexible. All the data corrections and handlings can be controlled transparently through user inputs. Finally, software implementation enables the slicing of neutron event, which can be used for the study of time dependent phenomena.
- Research Organization:
- Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States). Spallation Neutron Source (SNS)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Science (SC)
- DOE Contract Number:
- DE-AC05-00OR22725
- OSTI ID:
- 1092159
- Journal Information:
- Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section A: Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors and Associated Equipment, Vol. 647, Issue 1; ISSN 0168-9002
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
First Data Acquired on the EQ-SANS Diffractometer at the Spallation Neutron Source
Neutron Optics Optimization for the SNS EQ-SANS Diffractometer