The Most Useful Microscopic Probes - Neutrons and Synchrotron X-rays

Abstract

Neutron and synchrotron X-ray scattering are arguably the most useful microscopic probes of matter available to today's researcher. Both permit access to structural and dynamic information at the atomic level; the choice of which to use depends on the particular problem under investigation. Often either technique (or both) can be employed profitably; in a very real sense, neutrons and X-rays are complementary research tools. The most significant difference lies in the brilliance of the source–synchrotron radiation (SR) sources provide photon fluxes many orders of magnitude more intense than current and foreseeable neutron sources.