Fankang Li
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8 records found
1
The first measurements of magnetic correlation functions are presented using time-of-flight Spin-echo modulated small angle neutron scattering (SEMSANS) on the Larmor instrument at the ISIS pulsed neutron source. The accessible length scale is beyond that of the conventional SANS. A simplified model is presented to calculate the expected correlation functions for various magnetisation fields applied to the sample. As an example, we present the experimental data of a soft iron sample at various configurations of magnetisation field.
Fullerene derivatives are used in a wide range of applications including as electron acceptors in solution-processable organic photovoltaics. We report agglomeration of fullerene derivatives in optically opaque solutions of PC61BM and PC71BM, with concentrations ranging from 30 mg mL-1 up to 90 mg mL-1, in different solvents with relevance to organic photovoltaics, using a novel neutron scattering technique, Spin-Echo Small Angle Neutron Scattering (SESANS). From SESANS, agglomerates with correlation lengths larger than 1 μm are found in some PC61BM solutions, in contrast no agglomerates are seen in PC71BM solutions. These results clearly show that PC71BM is fundamentally more soluble than PC61BM in the solvents commonly used in photovoltaic inks and corroborating similar observations previously achieved using other experimental techniques. Computer models are presented to study the energetics of solution and agglomeration of both species, ascribing the difference to a kinetic effect probably related to the larger anisotropy of PC71BM. Also, this work showcases the power of SESANS to probe agglomerates of fullerene derivatives in completely opaque solutions for agglomerates of the order of one to several microns.
The energy resolution of the conventional way of measuring a small change in a phonon dispersion curve using neutron scattering is restricted by the relatively coarse intrinsic resolution ellipsoid of the neutron triple-axis spectrometer (TAS). By implementing inelastic neutron spin echo on the host TAS using the Larmor precession of the neutron spin, the energy resolution of such measurements can be further improved without reducing the resolution ellipsoid. Measurements of the temperature-dependent phonon energy change are demonstrated using superconducting magnetic Wollaston prisms at the HB-1 instrument of the High-Flux Isotope Reactor at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and the achievable resolution is <10 µeV.
To investigate long length scale structures using neutron scattering, real space techniques have shown certain advantages over the conventional methods working in reciprocal space. As one of the real space measurement techniques, spin echo modulated small angle neutron scattering (SEMSANS) has attracted attention, due to its relaxed constraints on sample environment and the possibility to combine SEMSANS and a conventional small angle neutron scattering instrument. In this report, we present the first implementation of SEMSANS at a pulsed neutron source and discuss important corrections to the data due to the sample absorption. These corrections allow measurements made with different neutron wavelengths and SEMSANS configurations to be overlaid and give confidence that the measurements provide an accurate representation of the density correlations in the sample.