Poplar: A Polarized Neutron Development Beamline for Polarization Analysis and Larmor Labeling Techniques

A thermal neutron development beamline equipped with a Si monochromator has been commissioned at the HB-2D beam port of the High Flux Isotope Reactor at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. This instrument is dedicated to the development of neutron scattering methods and instrumentation, serving as a complement to the cold neutron development beamline CG-4B at the cold guide hall. Two incident wavelengths are available, 2.43 and 1.72 Å, with a flux of 1.75 and 1.28 ×105 n/(cm2 s), respectively. The instrument can be operated either in high-resolution or high-intensity mode through the horizontal bending of the monochromator. As the bending increases, the incident flux on the sample increases as a result of the additional lattice strain induced in the silicon wafers. With its mission centered on advancing neutron scattering instrumentation, the beamline has been named POPLAR, an acronym for polarized neutron development beamline for polarization analysis and Larmor labeling techniques.