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A boron-coated CCD camera for direct detection of Ultracold Neutrons (UCN)

Journal Article · · No journal information
OSTI ID:1542969
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  1. Fermilab
  2. Los Alamos; North Carolina State U.
  3. North Carolina State U.
  4. Los Alamos
  5. Caltech
  6. NIST, Boulder
  7. ORNL, Oak Ridge (main)
  8. U. Kentucky, Lexington
  9. Indiana U.
  10. Virginia Tech.
  11. Tennessee Tech. U.
  12. Laue-Langevin Inst.
  13. East Tennessee State U.
  14. Sandia
  15. Dubna, JINR
+ Show Author Affiliations
A new boron-coated CCD camera is described for direct detection of ultracold neutrons (UCN) through the capture reactions $$^{10}$$B (n,$$\alpha$$0$$\gamma$$)$$^7$Li (6%) and $$^{10}$$B(n,$$\alpha$$1$$\gamma$$)$$^7$Li (94%). The experiments, which extend earlier works using a boron-coated ZnS:Ag scintillator, are based on direct detections of the neutron-capture byproducts in silicon. The high position resolution, energy resolution and particle ID performance of a scientific CCD allows for observation and identification of all the byproducts $$\alpha$$, $^7$Li and $$\gamma$$ (electron recoils). A signal-to-noise improvement on the order of 10$^4$ over the indirect method has been achieved. Sub-pixel position resolution of a few microns is demonstrated. The technology can also be used to build UCN detectors with an area on the order of 1 m$^2$. The combination of micrometer scale spatial resolution, few electrons ionization thresholds and large area paves the way to new research avenues including quantum physics of UCN and high-resolution neutron imaging and spectroscopy.
Research Organization:
Indiana U.; Virginia Tech.; Dubna, JINR; NIST, Boulder; Tennessee Tech. U.; North Carolina State U.; Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Laue-Langevin Inst.; Caltech; U. Kentucky, Lexington; Sandia National Laboratories (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (FNAL), Batavia, IL (United States); Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); East Tennessee State U.
Sponsoring Organization:
US Department of Energy
DOE Contract Number:
AC02-07CH11359
OSTI ID:
1542969
Report Number(s):
LA-UR-19-21706; FERMILAB-PUB-19-094-AE-PPD; oai:inspirehep.net:1723245; arXiv:1903.01335
Journal Information:
No journal information, Journal Name: No journal information
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

Figures / Tables (9)

Figure 1(p. 3)figure Figure 1
Figure 2(p. 3)figure Figure 2
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Figure 4(p. 5)figure Figure 4
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Figure 6(p. 6)figure Figure 6
Figure 7(p. 7)figure Figure 7
Table 1(p. 7)table Table 1
Figure 8(p. 8)figure Figure 8

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