Neutrons produced by the Replacement Research Reactor (RRR) are likely to attract scientists to Australia from around the world according to the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation's Head of Neutron Scattering, Dr Rob Robinson.
Neutron scattering, which was the subject of the 1994 Nobel Prize for Physics, allows scientists to investigate materials down to the atomic structure. Thermal neutrons generated in research reactors are scattered by atoms in the material being probed. The scattering pattern reveals the sample's molecular structure in detail. The potential applications are broad, and embrace burgeoning scientific fields such as bio and nano technologies.
Speaking to a visiting journalist from ABC television's science program "Catalyst", Dr Robinson said that the RRR would allow scientists to perform some research tasks "ten to one thousand times better" than they are currently performed by neutrons from the present HIFAR research reactor.
"Technology has moved on in the past 40 to 50 years since HIFAR was constructed, and Australia will benefit enormously from the cold neutron source which will be installed in the RRR. The cold neutron source will be one of the best in the world," Dr Robinson said. "Cold neutrons are much slower than normal 'thermal' neutrons and have longer wavelengths, which makes them ideal for scientists investigating larger molecules.
Scientists will be able to research everything from paint to food, geology, computing, magnets and even biological molecules. It will help restore Australia's competitiveness in this field with other first-world countries." Dr Robinson, who moved Australia from the United States two years ago because of the Replacement Research Reactor Project, said that while he had worked at accelerator-based neutron sources for much of his career, a research reactor was a very good choice for Australia, in part because of the efficiency of modern cold sources and their potential use in technologically important areas of research.
Australia's Replacement Research Reactor will include a modern cold-neutron source along with neutron wave guides, which will transport the neutrons into a large guide hall. Eight neutron beam instruments are planned for the RRR when it commences routine operation in 2006. The facility has the capacity for further expansion, including the potential for a second neutron guide hall. A suite of ancillary equipment will enable scientists to carry out studies at different temperatures, pressures and magnetic fields.
The neutron beam facilities are likely to attract scientists from around the world studying in the fields of materials science, engineering, earth and environmental sciences, physics and chemistry.