Neutron Physics Instrument May Unlock Mysteries of Universe

[zavvy]

<b>Neutron Physics Instrument May Unlock Mysteries of Universe</b><br /><br />LINK<br /><br />Fundamental questions that particle physicists have pondered for decades might be answered when a $9.2 million neutron physics beam line is built at the Department of Energy's Spallation Neutron Source on Chestnut Ridge.<br /> <br />At the core of physicists' excitement is the fact that the SNS will produce up to 100 times more neutrons than are produced by any comparable source in the world. Tapping in to those neutrons will be the Fundamental Neutron Physics beam line, which will help physicists exploit neutrons to learn more about the Big Bang, left-right symmetry of the universe and the amount of energy produced in the sun. Recently, the beam line project passed a milestone with the approval of the performance baseline -- known as Critical Decision 2. <br /><br />"This is, in a sense, the formal definition of the scope of the project and represents a detailed agreement between DOE and Oak Ridge National Laboratory as to what will be built, when it will be built, how much it will cost and how the project will be managed," said Geoff Greene, a professor at the University of Tennessee and researcher in the Physics Division at ORNL. <br /><br />Greene noted that much work lies ahead, but the benefits of having extremely intense beams of neutrons at their disposal should be phenomenal. <br /><br />"To scientists studying materials -- the main focus of SNS research -- the neutron is merely a tool that helps them probe the structure of condensed matter," Greene said. "But to particle physicists, the neutron holds the key to understanding many of the mysteries of the universe." <br /><br />The fact physicists will have many more neutrons available to them greatly increases the accuracy of their experiments, one of which is aimed at pinpointing the lifetime of a free neutron.