Extreme Temperature Sample Environment for Materials Research using Neutron Scattering

This project addresses the need to access and control extreme temperature sample environments that are used in many research applications at neutron beamline facilities. Research on advanced materials is hampered by difficulty in accessing short-lived metastable states that play a crucial role in determining the material's ultimate structure and properties. This project will lead to development of a novel sample environment and event-based data processing technologies that will enable studies of materials under extreme conditions that relate to production of semiconductors, optical glasses, medical device materials and energy conversion materials. Integration of simultaneous atomic structure and materials property measurements provides a unique and much needed capability to develop new advanced materials. In combination with advanced sample environments, high flux neutron sources such as SNS provide an opportunity to revolutionize advanced materials research. Processing and solidifying liquids is a critical value adding step in manufacturing semiconductors, optical materials, metals and in the operation of many energy-conversion and medical devices. Research will be performed jointly by the small business and the Spallation Neutron Source at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The proposed solution is to integrate a novel containerless sample environment and an event-based data acquisition system with a high flux neutron beamline and non-contact measurements of density, viscosity and surface tension of liquids. The use of laser beam heating allows rapid heating (100 K/s) and cooling to access metastable states that cannot be obtained using a conventional furnace. The R&D will: (i) fully commission the alpha prototype into the user program, (ii) develop and construct a beta prototype instrument, (iii) integrate simultaneous measurements of atomic structure and thermophysical properties, and (iv) establish commercial presence for the instrument, launch product and initiate sales. The product of this R&D will be a beamline facility and a research instrument that will be marketed by direct interaction with customers. The proposed system has direct applications in neutron facilities such as SNS, HFIR, ESS, ISIS and other sources. The approach is also suitable for marketing to X-ray facilities where there are additional markets for instruments based on the proposed technology. Combined structure/property measurements respond to a market need in industrial and university materials research. Prior sales of extreme environment instruments has been several M$.