Abstract
Among most other methods, neutron scattering allows a detailed understanding of the static and dynamic properties on an atomic scale of materials that occur in our environment. Combined with x-ray scattering a very large range of momentum and energy transfers can be covered thanks to the high complementarity of both techniques. The most relevant, unique character of neutrons that cannot be matched by any other technique, can be summarized as follows:
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The neutron interacts with the atomic nucleus, and not with the electrons as x-rays do. This hats important consequences: i) the response of neutrons from light atoms like hydrogen or oxygen is much higher than for x-rays, ii) neutrons can easily distinguish atoms of comparable atomic number, iii) neutrons distinguish isotopes: For example, deuteration of macromolecules allows to focus on specific aspects of their atomic arrangement or their motion.
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For the same wavelength as hard x-rays the neutron energy is much lower and comparable to the energy of elementary excitations in matter. Therefore, neutrons do not only allow the determination of the “static average” chemical structure, but also the investigation of the dynamic properties of the atomic arrangements that are directly related to the physical properties of materials.
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© 1998 Kluwer Academic Publishers
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Böni, P., Furrer, A. (1998). Introduction to Neutron Scattering. In: Furrer, A. (eds) Neutron Scattering in Layered Copper-Oxide Superconductors. Physics and Chemistry of Materials with Low-Dimensional Structures, vol 20. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-015-1284-8_1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-015-1284-8_1
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
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