Polarimetric neutron scattering

Abstract
Beams of spin polarized itinerant neutrons have long been used to map magnetic electrons in ferromagnetic and paramagnetic materials under an applied field. End of 1960's, Moon, Riste and Koehler introduce spin resolved neutron scattering at HFIR in Oak-Ridge, enlarging considerably the field of polarized neutrons. But it is only during the last decade, with the introduction of the zero-field polarimeter Cryopad at ILL, that the 3 components of the neutron spin polarization vector are measured independently before and after scattering, giving the neutron all its strength to uncover complicated antiferromagnetic arrangements. Our slides ought to introduce the spin polarization vector, the two main neutron scattering amplitudes, magnetic and nuclear, the high sensitivity which results from their interference, and the experimental techniques available in Grenoble for such measurements.