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@ARTICLE{Ioffe:1034920,
author = {Ioffe, Alexander and Konik, Peter and Batkov, Konstantin},
title = {{A} concept of a para-hydrogen-based cold neutron source
for simultaneous high flux and high brightness},
journal = {Journal of nuclear engineering},
volume = {6},
number = {1},
issn = {2673-4362},
address = {Basel},
publisher = {MDPI},
reportid = {FZJ-2025-00035},
pages = {3 -},
year = {2025},
abstract = {A novel concept of cold neutron source employing chessboard
or staircase assemblies of high-aspect-ratio rectangular
para-hydrogen moderators with well-developed and practically
fully illuminated surfaces of the individual moderators is
proposed. An analytic approach for calculating the
brightness of para-hydrogen moderators is introduced.
Because the brightness gain originates from a near-surface
effect resulting from the prevailing single-collision
process during thermal-to-cold neutron conversion,
high-aspect-ratio rectangular cold moderators offer a
significant increase, up to a factor of 10, in cold neutron
brightness compared to a voluminous moderator. The obtained
results are in excellent agreement with MCNP calculations.
The chessboard or staircase assemblies of such moderators
facilitate the generation of wide neutron beams with
simultaneously higher brightness and intensity compared to a
para-hydrogen-based cold neutron source made of a single
moderator (either flat or voluminous) of the same
cross-section. Analytic model calculations indicate that
gains of up to approximately 2.5 in both brightness and
intensity can be achieved compared to a source made of a
single moderator of the same width. However, these gains are
affected by details of the moderator–reflector assembly
and should be estimated through dedicated Monte Carlo
simulations, which can only be conducted for a particular
neutron source and are beyond the scope of this general
study. The gain reduction in our study, from a higher value
to 2.5, is mostly caused by these two factors: the limited
volume of the high-density thermal neutron region
surrounding the reactor core or spallation target, which
restricts the total length of the moderator assembly, and
the finite width of moderator walls. The relatively large
length of moderator assemblies results in a significant
increase in pulse duration at short pulse neutron sources,
making their straightforward use very problematic, though
some applications are not excluded. The concept of
“low-dimensionality” in moderators is explored,
demonstrating that achieving a substantial increase in
brightness necessitates moderators to be low-dimensional
both geometrically, implying a high aspect ratio, and
physically, requiring the moderator’s smallest dimension
to be smaller than the characteristic scale of moderator
medium (about the mean free path for thermal neutrons). This
explains why additional compression of the moderator along
the longest direction, effectively giving it a tube-like
shape, does not result in a significant brightness increase
comparable to the flattening of the moderator.},
cin = {JCNS-FRM-II / MLZ},
ddc = {620},
cid = {I:(DE-Juel1)JCNS-FRM-II-20110218 / I:(DE-588b)4597118-3},
pnm = {6G4 - Jülich Centre for Neutron Research (JCNS) (FZJ)
(POF4-6G4) / 632 - Materials – Quantum, Complex and
Functional Materials (POF4-632)},
pid = {G:(DE-HGF)POF4-6G4 / G:(DE-HGF)POF4-632},
experiment = {EXP:(DE-MLZ)NOSPEC-20140101},
typ = {PUB:(DE-HGF)16},
UT = {WOS:001482835400001},
doi = {10.3390/jne6010003},
url = {https://juser.fz-juelich.de/record/1034920},
}