Development of a magnetic control beamline at the ESS
- Reference number
- RIF21-0057
- Project leader
- Santoro, Valentina
- Start and end dates
- 220901-271231
- Amount granted
- 15 000 000 SEK
- Administrative organization
- Lund University
- Research area
- Materials Science and Technology
Summary
ESS has been driven by the neutron scattering community but its mandate includes a fundamental physics program. Of critical importance to both a fundamental physics program at the ESS and to the condensed matter research program is the development of in-house infrastructure and capability for high precision magnetic control systems. This is the focus of the project. As part of this application, magnetic field coils, magnetic shielding, power supplies, fluxgate magnetometer (3D, up to 3mT), a robotic field mapper, and a precision positioner for field mapping and coil fine-adjustment will be acquired and located at the ESS. This equipment will be assembled and utilized in a test experiment with the first functioning ESS beamline the so-called ESS test beamline. . The tests foreseen at the test beamline will not only be able to show that the magnetic control beamline works but, in doing so, provide one of the first fundamental physics experiments at the ESS: a search for neutron to sterile neutron regeneration processes. The development of a magnetic control beamline not only provides an important infrastructure for the fundamental physics community but will also benefit the neutron scattering instruments currently under construction, in fact, 12 of the approved 15 instruments, will provide polarized neutrons, for which it is necessary to control the magnetic field.
Popular science description
Presently under construction in Lund, the European Spallation Source (ESS) will be the world’s brightest neutron source, opening up new opportunities in materials and life sciences, energy, environmental technology and fundamental physics. With 13 European partner member states, the ESS is a huge international endeavour. As one of the host states and given its size, Sweden has made a uniquely large investment. To exploit this investment, Swedish institutions must exploit the physics potential of the ESS which requires important preparatory work. This application enables Lund University scientists to play a leading role in an important area - the magnetic control of beamlines. Such beamlines are of benefit for material science and fundamental physics. This application foresees the design, construction and testing of prototypes to ensure high precision control of the magnetic field in which neutrons pass to a precision of 1/100th of that of the earth’s magnetic field. The work also takes advantage of the construction of a so-called test beamline which offers the first opportunity to study neutrons produced in the so-called spallation process at the ESS. The applicant will be there “on the ground” looking at the first neutrons while testing the infrastructure sought with this proposal. Furthermore, the existence of the test beam-line and coupled with the prototypes for magnetic control allows these tests to act as an experiment in its own right. Searches will be made for so-called sterile neutrons which would only manifest themselves in a magnetically controlled environment. The existence of sterile neutrons would be of fundamental significance and could address open long-standing questions in modern physics such as the origin of the matter-antimatter asymmetry and the nature of dark matter.