Three-dimensional magnetic spin-echo small-angle neutron scattering and neutron depolarization: A comparison
- Department of Radiation, Radionuclides and Reactors, Faculty of Applied Sciences, Delft University of Technology, 2629 JB Delft (Netherlands)
The recently developed magnetic spin-echo small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) technique provides unique information about the distance correlation of the local vector magnetization as a function of the spin-echo length within a magnetic material. The technique probes the magnetic correlations on a length scale from 10 nm up to 10 {mu}m within the bulk of a magnetic material by evaluating the Larmor precession of a polarized neutron beam in a spin-echo setup. The characteristics of the spin-echo SANS technique are discussed and compared to those of the more conventional neutron depolarization technique. Both of these techniques probe the average size of the magnetic inhomogeneities and the local magnetic texture. The magnetic spin-echo SANS technique gives information on the size distribution of these magnetic inhomogeneities perpendicular to the beam and, in principle, independent on the local magnetic induction. This information is not accessible by the neutron depolarization technique that gives the average size parallel to the beam multiplied with the square of the local magnetic induction. The basic possibilities of the magnetic spin-echo SANS technique are demonstrated by experiments on samples with a strong magnetic texture.
- OSTI ID:
- 20853361
- Journal Information:
- Review of Scientific Instruments, Vol. 77, Issue 7; Other Information: DOI: 10.1063/1.2204579; (c) 2006 American Institute of Physics; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0034-6748
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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