Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Diffuse reflection of ultracold neutrons from low-roughness surfaces

  • Regular Article - Experimental Physics
  • Published:
The European Physical Journal A Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

We report a measurement of the reflection of ultracold neutrons from flat, large-area plates of different Fermi potential materials with low surface roughness. The results were used to test two diffuse reflection models, the well-known Lambert model and the micro-roughness model which is based on wave scattering. The Lambert model fails to reproduce the diffuse reflection data. The surface roughness b and correlation length w , obtained by fitting the micro-roughness model to the data are in the range 1\( \le\) b \( \le\)3 nm and 10\( \le\) w \( \le\)120 nm, in qualitative agreement with independent measurements using atomic force microscopy.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. J.H. Lambert, Photometria sive de mensure et gradibus luminis colorum et umbra (Eberhard Klett, Augsburg, 1760)

  2. P. Beckmann, A. Spizzichino, The Scattering of Electromagnetic Waves from Rough Surfaces (Artech House, Norwood, MA, 1987)

  3. A.G. Voronovich, Wave Scattering from Rough Surfaces, edited by L.M. Brekhovskikh, L.B. Felsen, H.A. Haus, Springer Ser. Wave Phenom., Vol. 17 (1998)

  4. L. Nevot, P. Croce, Rev. Phys. Appl. 15, 761 (1980)

    Google Scholar 

  5. S.K. Sinha, E.B. Sirota, S. Garoff, H.B. Stanley, Phys. Rev. B 38, 2297 (1988)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  6. R. Pynn, Phys. Rev. B 45, 602 (1992)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  7. I.B. Khriplovich, S.K. Lamoreaux, CP Violation without Strangeness: Electric Dipole Moments of Particles, Atoms and Molecules (Springer-Verlag, 1997) ISSN 0172-5998

  8. H. Abele, Prog. Part. Nucl. Phys. 60, 1 (2008)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  9. M. Pospelov, A. Ritz, Ann. Phys. (N.Y.) 318, 119 (2005)

    Article  MATH  ADS  Google Scholar 

  10. A. Steyerl, Z. Phys. 254, 169 (1972)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  11. V.K. Ignatovich, JINR, Dubna, Report P4-7055 (1973)

  12. P.M. Morse, U. Ingard, Theoretical Acoustics (Princeton University Press, Princeton NJ, 1968)

  13. A. Steyerl, S.S. Malik, L.R. Iyengar, Physica B 173, 47 (1991)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  14. F. Atchison, T. Brys, M. Daum, P. Fierlinger, A. Fomin, R. Henneck, K. Kirch, M. Kuzniak, A. Pichlmaier, Nucl. Instrum. Methods A 552, 513 (2005) (The code is maintained at PSI and can be obtained from G. Zsigmond.)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  15. A.E. Meyerovich, A. Stephaniants, Phys. Rev. B 60, 9129 (1999)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  16. R. Adhikari, Y. Cheng, A.E. Meyerovich, V.V. Nesvizhevskii, Phys. Rev. A 75, 063613 (2007)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  17. R. Golub, D.J. Richardson, S.K. Lamoureaux, Ultra-Cold Neutrons (Adam Hilger, Bristol, Philadelphia and New York, 1991) ISBN 0-7503-0115-5

  18. V.K. Ignatovich, The Physics of Ultracold Neutrons (Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1990) ISBN 0-19-851015-2.

  19. F. Atchison, T. Brys, M. Daum, P. Fierlinger, A. Foelske, M. Gupta, R. Henneck, S. Heule, M. Kasprzak, K. Kirch, R. Koetz, M. Kuzniak, T. Lippert, C.F. Meyer, F. Nolting, A. Pichlmaier, D. Schneider, P. Siemroth, U. Straumann, Phys. Lett. B 625, 19 (2005)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  20. K.J. Kügler, W. Paul, U. Trinks, Z. Phys. B: Condens. Matter 39, 361 (1980)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  21. V.V. Nesvizhevsky, Nucl. Instrum. Methods A 557, 576 (2006)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  22. V.V. Nesvizhevsky, G. Pignol, K.V. Protasov, G. Quemener, Nucl. Instrum. Methods A 578, 435 (2007)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  23. C. Plonka, P. Geltenbort, T. Soldner, H. Haese, Nucl. Instrum. Methods A 578, 450 (2007)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  24. I. Altarev, A. Frei, P. Geltenbort, E. Gutsmiedl, F.J. Hartmann, A.R. Mueller, S. Paul, C. Plonka, D. Tortorella, Nucl. Instrum. Methods A 570, 101 (2007)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  25. V.K. Ignatovich, JINR, Dubna, Report P3-82-811 (1982)

  26. S. Heule, PhD Thesis, University of Zurich, unpublished (2008)

  27. ILL yellow book, http://wwww.ill.fr/YellowBook/PF2/

  28. F. Atchison, B. Blau, M. Daum, P. Fierlinger, P. Geltenbort, M. Gupta, R. Henneck, S. Heule, M. Kasprzak, A. Knecht, M. Kuzniak, K. Kirch, M. Meier, A. Pichlmaier, R. Reiser, B. Theiler, O. Zimmer, G. Zsigmond, Nucl. Instrum. Methods B 260, 647 (2007)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  29. M.H. Modi, G.S. Lodha, M.K. Tiwari, S.K. Rai, Nucl. Instrum. Methods B 239, 383 (2005)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  30. Narziss, SINQ (PSI), http://kur.web.psi.ch/narziss/

  31. V.V. Nesvizhevsky et al., Nature 415, 297 (2002)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  32. O. Filies, O. Böling, K. Grewer, J. Lekki, Appl. Surface Sci. 141, 357 (1999)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  33. M. Makela, PhD Thesis, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, unpublished (2005)

Download references

Author information

Author notes

  1. M. Kużniak

    Present address: Queens University, Kingston, Canada

  2. C. Plonka-Spehr

    Present address: Gutenberg University, Mainz, Germany

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Paul Scherrer Institut, PSI, Villigen, Switzerland

    F. Atchison, M. Daum, R. Henneck, S. Heule, M. Horisberger, M. Kasprzak, K. Kirch, A. Knecht, M. Kużniak, B. Lauss, A. Mtchedlishvili, M. Meier, G. Petzoldt, R. Schelldorfer & G. Zsigmond

  2. University Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland

    S. Heule, A. Knecht & U. Straumann

  3. Stefan Meyer Institut, Vienna, Austria

    M. Kasprzak

  4. Institut Laue Langevin, ILL, Grenoble, France

    C. Plonka-Spehr

  5. Smoluchowski Institute of Physics, Jagiellonian University, Cracow, Poland

    M. Kużniak

Authors
  1. F. Atchison
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. M. Daum
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. R. Henneck
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. S. Heule
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. M. Horisberger
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. M. Kasprzak
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. K. Kirch
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  8. A. Knecht
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  9. M. Kużniak
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  10. B. Lauss
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  11. A. Mtchedlishvili
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  12. M. Meier
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  13. G. Petzoldt
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  14. C. Plonka-Spehr
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  15. R. Schelldorfer
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  16. U. Straumann
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  17. G. Zsigmond
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to R. Henneck.

Additional information

Communicated by R. Krücken

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Atchison, F., Daum, M., Henneck, R. et al. Diffuse reflection of ultracold neutrons from low-roughness surfaces. Eur. Phys. J. A 44, 23–29 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1140/epja/i2010-10926-x

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1140/epja/i2010-10926-x

Keywords

Search

Navigation