Speaker
Dr
Winfried Kockelmann
(STFC-Rutherford Appleton Laboratory)
Description
A new neutron tomography and diffraction facility has recently been taken into operation at the accelerator-based neutron spallation source ISIS at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory at Harwell, UK. Neutron radiography and tomography can be used for a non-invasive 3D visualisation of inner components and structures of archaeological objects and heritage science materials. The high penetration power of neutron allows assessing the preservation state of an object; organic material inside metal structures can be made visible, and distributions of hydrogenous materials can be determined. Selected regions of interest can additionally be characterised by time-of-flight neutron diffraction, for studying the material compositions and crystalline structures.
The instrument is currently being commissioned and prepared for user operation. Initially, the instrument allows for white-beam neutron radiography and tomography; energy-selective and energy-dispersive imaging options are available for maximizing image contrasts between given materials and for mapping microstructure features in metals and alloys. IMAT is a new kind of neutron instrument that makes use of time-of-flight transmission techniques. A unique feature of IMAT is that neutron imaging and neutron diffraction are available on the same beamline. The installation of diffraction detectors is envisaged in the near future, for spatially-resolved crystallographic phase, residual strain and texture analysis. We report on the installation status of IMAT, and present results from the instrument commissioning. We will discuss the flexibility that a multi-purpose instrument offers for cultural heritage materials science.
Primary author
Dr
Winfried Kockelmann
(STFC-Rutherford Appleton Laboratory)
Co-author
Dr
Triestino Minniti
(STFC-Rutherford Appleton Laboratory)
