Today, for the first time we successfully took neutron reflectivity data on a 325nm thick film, of alumina deposited on silicon. The data were taken on our PLATYPUS neutron reflectometer, which has a design specification of handling films up to 100nm thick.
The image shows neutron and X-ray data from the same film: the narrow spacing of the fringes determines the film thickness and indicate that our instrument can operate well in high-resolution mode.
In this case the neutron data appear substantially better in quality because there is more contrast between alumina and silicon with neutrons than with X-rays.
The sample was prepared by Dr. Gerry Triani in ANSTO's Institute of Materials Engineering.
Published: 10/02/2009