Researchers at NIST and the University of Maryland have developed a new optical neutron detector that can detect individual neutrons and record them over a wide range of intensities. The detector, called the Lyman alpha neutron detector (LAND), works by detecting Lyman alpha photons emitted when neutrons are absorbed by helium-3 atoms. This process produces hydrogen and tritium atoms that emit Lyman alpha light, which is then recorded by the detector.
The new detector has the potential to improve existing neutron measurements and enable tests of new phenomena beyond the Standard Model of particle physics. It could also lead to better measurements at existing neutron facilities and enable new tests of physics beyond the Standard Model. The use of an optical means of detection, rather than an electronic one, offers the prospect of at least a hundredfold improvement in neutron detectors’ dynamic range.
Keywords: Neutron, Hydrogen, Helium, Detector, Measurement
