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A thermal neutron is a free neutron with a kinetic energy of about 0.025 eV (about 4.0×10 −21 J or 2.4 MJ/kg, hence a speed of 2.19 km/s), which is the energy corresponding to the most probable speed at a temperature of 290 K (17 °C or 62 °F), the mode of the Maxwell–Boltzmann distribution for this temperature, E peak = k T.
Neutron moderators are used to produce thermal neutrons, which have kinetic energies below 1 eV (T < 500K). [1] Thermal neutrons are used to maintain a nuclear chain reaction in a nuclear reactor, and as a research tool in neutron scattering experiments and other applications of neutron science (see below). The remainder of this article ...
Neutron spectroscopy is a spectroscopic method of measuring atomic and magnetic motions by measuring the kinetic energy of emitted neutrons. The measured neutrons may be emitted directly (for example, by nuclear reactions), or they may scatter off cold matter before reaching the detector
Neutron flux in asymptotic giant branch stars and in supernovae is responsible for most of the natural nucleosynthesis producing elements heavier than iron.In stars there is a relatively low neutron flux on the order of 10 5 to 10 11 cm −2 s −1, resulting in nucleosynthesis by the s-process (slow neutron-capture process).
These neutrons are termed thermal neutrons. Upon irradiation, a thermal neutron interacts with the target nucleus via a non-elastic collision, causing neutron capture. This collision forms a compound nucleus which is in an excited state. The excitation energy within the compound nucleus is formed from the binding energy of the thermal neutron ...
In physics, thermalisation (or thermalization) is the process of physical bodies reaching thermal equilibrium through mutual interaction. In general, the natural tendency of a system is towards a state of equipartition of energy and uniform temperature that maximizes the system's entropy.
Neutron diffraction or elastic neutron scattering is the application of neutron scattering to the determination of the atomic and/or magnetic structure of a material. A sample to be examined is placed in a beam of thermal or cold neutrons to obtain a diffraction pattern that provides information of the structure of the material.
Most neutron detectors used in thermal-spectrum nuclear reactors are optimized to detect thermal neutrons. Plasma physics: Neutron detection is used in fusion plasma physics experiments such as JET. [70] For example, the detected neutron rate from a plasma can give information about the ion temperature. [71]