Reasons for co-operation
Previous contacts, impulses
The scientific cooperation between PNPI and GKSS started at the beginning of the 90-th. Experiments were performed using the small angle neutron scattering instruments SANS-2, SANS-1 and DCD, the neutron reflectometers NERO and PNR, and the diffractometers FSS and TEX-2. The number of beamtime days granted to PNPI users at GKSS instruments exceeds in sum up to about 100 days a year. Scientists of PNPI and GKSS develop together new approaches to the small angle diffraction for the investigations of the nanoscale ordering in materials (ref.). In particular, pioneering scattering experiments on large scale periodic structures were performed. The PNPI staff is world-wide known for their polarized neutron scattering experiments and for the corresponding development of new theories. For the last 15 years PNPI has provided and installed up to 10 resonant spin-flippers with rf-generators at GKSS instruments. Recently, PNPI has installed a neutron analyzer at the reflectometer NERO.
Benefits for each country
The dismounting and transfer of the GeNF instrumentation to another neutron source is necessary due to the shutdown of the research reactor FRG-1 in June 2010. The suggestion of PNPI to install these instruments at the new high-flux reactor PIK (Gatchina, near to St. Petersburg) is a very attractive solution:
- The instruments which are technically up to date, will be used in future at a neutron source with a very high flux due to the 100 MW of the PIK reactor.
- GKSS will have a certain contingent of beamtime at the transferred instruments.
The Russian side concentrates all efforts (finances and men-power) to the completition of the PIK reactor and it will benefit from the know how and the participation of its partners in construction and operation of the neutron scattering instruments. GKSS instruments suit ideally to the neutron guide hall of the PIK reactor.