In an effort to fortify the frontiers of neutron detection technology, Matthew Loyd of Oak Ridge National Laboratory has secured an Early Career Research Program award from the Department of Energy’s Office of Science. Loyd, serving as an R&D staff scientist within the Neutron Technologies Division, has earned the distinction for his innovative proposal that strives to notably enhance neutron imaging capabilities.
The focus of Loyd's proposal, titled "Development of a Novel High-Count-Rate, High-Resolution Neutron Camera with Advanced Gamma Discrimination Capabilities," is poised to revolutionize the way scientists capture neutron data. The design leverages existing camera technology, which translates low-energy neutrons into thousands of visible photons, and combines it with an array of silicon photomultipliers that seek to pinpoint the position of each neutron—a breakthrough that could significantly amplify experimental sensitivities, as reported by the Oak Ridge National Laboratory.
Director of ORNL, Stephen Streiffer, in a statement made by the aforementioned source, expressed high expectations for Loyd's project: "Neutron science is one of our signature strengths, and I look forward to seeing the advances in neutron scattering that Matthew will lead with the support of this distinguished award." The proposed technology stands to grapple with gamma radiation, a common byproduct of neutron experiments, thus sharpening the resolution of the data collected and mitigating the challenges posed by noise interference in the detection process.
Loyd articulated the necessity for such advancements in the context of increasing demands on current neutron detection technology, "As neutron sources become more powerful, and next-gen neutron techniques become more sensitive, current neutron detector technologies are being pushed past fundamental limits of count rate, spatial resolution and signal-to-noise ratio," he told Oak Ridge National Laboratory. This project, funded by the DOE, envisions a versatile neutron detection system adaptable to a wide spectrum of scattering instruments.
