Measurements of ultracold-neutron lifetimes in solid deuterium
C L Morris1, J M Anaya, T J Bowles
1Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM 87545, USA.
Abstract:
We present the first measurements of the survival time of ultracold neutrons (UCNs) in solid deuterium (SD2). This critical parameter provides a fundamental limitation to the effectiveness of superthermal UCN sources that utilize solid ortho-deuterium as the source material. These measurements are performed utilizing a SD2 source coupled to a spallation source of neutrons, providing a demonstration of UCN production in this geometry and permitting systematic studies of the influence of thermal up-scatter and contamination with para-deuterium on the UCN survival time.
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