Status of Neutron Imaging

Abstract

This chapter describes the situation in the field of neutron imaging as a tool for the investigation of macroscopic samples and objects. With the help of the transmitted neutrons, providing a “shadow image” on a two-dimensional detection system, a nondestructive analysis is possible. Although already in use since several decades, the utilization of neutron-imaging techniques has become just more and more important for practical applications due to many new aspects in the detector development, improvements in the methodology on the one side, and the increased requests to detect and to quantify, for example, hydrogenous materials in different matrixes on the other side. Compared to traditional film measurement common some years ago, nowadays the digital methods have replaced it in most cases. There are many new aspects from the physics side as phase contrast imaging, energy selective imaging by using time-of-flight techniques, the use of pulsed sources, the quantification of image data, and the access to fast neutrons in the MeV region. The practical aspect of neutron imaging will be underlined by examples from the author’s work made together with his team in collaboration with several research centers and with industrial partners. Based on these experiences, there is a reason for optimism that neutron imaging will play an increasing role in the future in science and technology.