Operating principle of the superconducting neutron detector

• Project/Area Number: 21K14566
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career Scientists
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: Basic Section 31010:Nuclear engineering-related
• Research Institution: Osaka Metropolitan University (2022-2023); Osaka Prefecture University (2021)
• Principal Investigator: VU THEDANG 大阪公立大学, 大学院工学研究科, 特任助教 (60826121)
• Project Period (FY): 2021-04-01 – 2024-03-31
• Project Status: Completed (Fiscal Year 2023)
• Budget Amount: ¥4,680,000 (Direct Cost: ¥3,600,000、Indirect Cost: ¥1,080,000); Fiscal Year 2022: ¥1,690,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,300,000、Indirect Cost: ¥390,000); Fiscal Year 2021: ¥2,990,000 (Direct Cost: ¥2,300,000、Indirect Cost: ¥690,000)
• Keywords: Neutron detector / Superconducting sensor / Positional resolution / Detection efficiency / Fast readout circuit / CB-KID / Wood's metal / Temperature stability / Spatial resolution / Neutron image / Bragg-edges / Bragg-dips / Fast neutron / Neutron imaging / Superconducting detector / Operating principle / Readout circuit

Outline of Research at the Start

This project aims at understanding the operating principle of a 4-CH delay line current-biased kinetic inductance detector (CB-KID) system. Since this detector is very different from any other existing neutron detectors, we need deeper understanding for the physical basis. The nuclear reaction 10B(n,alpha)7Li creates a hot spot in a superconducting Nb nanowire under the dc bias current. A coordinate (X,Y) of the hot spot is obtained by using time differences in signal arrival timestamps to obtain neutron image.

Outline of Annual Research Achievements

In the final fiscal year of 2023, we evaluated all results obtained in this project in view of publication missions and exploring new ideas for future studies. (1) To optimize neutron detectors, the stabilization of temperature at 5K was important to obtain high-resolution images under pulsed neutron. In preceding studies, we found the spatial resolution was dependent on the detector position at the central areas or at the detector edges. The delay-line technique is influenced by the propagation-velocity fluctuations in evaluating positions of the images. The temperature stability of neutron detector realized within +/-70 uK reduced such efforts appreciably. (2) We built a new cryostat to mount the test sample at room temperature [1]. This made it possible to apply our method to various different samples. (3) The best resolution was 10um when the sample was placed at cryogenic sample while it was 24um when the sample was placed at room temperature. We can conduct the energy-resolving spectroscopy from 1meV to 500keV [2]. (4) We conducted neutron transmission imaging for various samples such as SmSn3 crystal, FeS2 crystal, Ammonite Fe2O3, and Wood metal alloy [3], and YbSn3 crystal [4].
[1] T. Ishida, T.D. Vu, at al., J. Low Temp. Phys. 214, 152 (2024).
[2] T.D. Vu, et al., Invited talks at 4th ICEBA2023 (Dec 8th 2023, HCM, Vietnam).
[3] T.D. Vu et al., J. Phys. Conf. Ser. 2545, 012019 (2023).
[4] H. Shishido, T.D. Vu, et al., J. Appl. Cryst. 56, 1108-1113 (2023).

Research Products

• [Journal Article] Neutron Transmission CB-KID Imager Using Samples Placed at Room Temperature (2024)
  • Author(s): Ishida Takekazu、Vu The Dang、Shishido Hiroaki、Aizawa Kazuya、Oku Takayuki、Oikawa Kenichi、Harada Masahide、Kojima Kenji M.、Miyajima Shigeyuki、Koyama Tomio、Soyama Kazuhiko、Hidaka Mutsuo、Suzuki Soh Y.、Tanaka Manobu M.、Machida Masahiko、Kawamata Shuichi
  • Journal Title: Journal of Low Temperature Physics Volume: 214 Issue: 3-4 Pages: 152-157
  • DOI: 10.1007/s10909-023-03030-9
  • Peer Reviewed / Open Access / Int'l Joint Research
• [Journal Article] Neutron transmission imaging system with a superconducting kinetic inductance detector (2024)
  • Author(s): Vu The Dang、Shishido Hiroaki、Aizawa Kazuya、Oku Takayuki、Oikawa Kenichi、Harada Masahide、Kojima Kenji M.、Miyajima Shigeyuki、Soyama Kazuhiko、Koyama Tomio、Hidaka Mutsuo、Suzuki Soh Y.、Tanaka Manobu M.、Malins Alex、Machida Masahiko、Ishida Takekazu
  • Journal Title: Journal of Physics: Conference Series Volume: 2323
  • Peer Reviewed / Open Access / Int'l Joint Research
• [Journal Article] Orientation mapping of YbSn₃ single crystals based on Bragg-dip analysis using a delay-line superconducting sensor (2023)
  • Author(s): Shishido Hiroaki、Vu The Dang、Aizawa Kazuya、Kojima Kenji M.、Koyama Tomio、Oikawa Kenichi、Harada Masahide、Oku Takayuki、Soyama Kazuhiko、Miyajima Shigeyuki、Hidaka Mutsuo、Suzuki Soh Y.、Tanaka Manobu M.、Kawamata Shuichi、Ishida Takekazu
  • Journal Title: Journal of Applied Crystallography Volume: 56 Issue: 4 Pages: 1108-1113
  • DOI: 10.1107/s1600576723005204
  • Peer Reviewed / Int'l Joint Research
• [Journal Article] Superconducting neutron transmission imaging for investigating a sequential change in phase separations of low-melting Wood’s metal (2023)
  • Author(s): Dang Vu The、Shishido Hiroaki、Aizawa Kazuya、Oku Takayuki、Oikawa Kenichi、Harada Masahide、Kojima Kenji M.、Miyajima Shigeyuki、Soyama Kazuhiko、Koyama Tomio、Hidaka Mutsuo、Suzuki Soh Y.、Tanaka Manobu M.、Machida Masahiko、Kawamata Shuichi、Ishida Takekazu
  • Journal Title: Journal of Physics: Conference Series Volume: 2545 Issue: 1 Pages: 012019-012019
  • DOI: 10.1088/1742-6596/2545/1/012019
  • Peer Reviewed / Open Access / Int'l Joint Research
• [Journal Article] Crystalline Orientation of CaF₂ window determined by Neutron Transmission Imaging using a Delay Line Current-Biased Kinetic-Inductance Detector (2023)
  • Author(s): Shishido Hiroaki、Dang Vu The、Aizawa Kazuya、Kojima Kenji M.、Koyama Tomio、Oikawa Kenichi、Harada Masahide、Oku Takayuki、Soyama Kazuhiko、Miyajima Shigeyuki、Hidaka Mutsuo、Suzuki Soh Y.、Tanaka Manobu M.、Kawamata Shuichi、Ishida Takekazu
  • Journal Title: Journal of Physics: Conference Series Volume: 2545 Issue: 1 Pages: 012020-012020
  • DOI: 10.1088/1742-6596/2545/1/012020
  • Peer Reviewed / Open Access / Int'l Joint Research
• [Journal Article] Superconducting neutron transmission imaging for investigating a sequential change in phase separations of low melting Wood’s metal (2023)
  • Author(s): The Dang Vu, Hiroaki Shishido, Kazuya Aizawa, Takayuki Oku, Kenichi Oikawa, Masahide Harada, Kenji M. Kojima, Shigeyuki Miyajima, Kazuhiko Soyama, Tomio Koyama, Mutsuo Hidaka, Soh Y. Suzuki, Manobu M. Tanaka, Masahiko Machida, Shuichi Kawamata and Takekazu Ishida
  • Journal Title: Journal of Physics: Conference Series in press Volume: -
  • Peer Reviewed / Open Access / Int'l Joint Research
• [Journal Article] Crystalline Orientation of CaF2 window determined by Neutron Transmission Imaging using a Delay Line Current-Biased Kinetic-Inductance Detector (2023)
  • Author(s): Hiroaki Shishido, The Dang Vu , Kazuya Aizawa , Kenji M. Kojima , Tomio Koyama , Kenichi Oikawa, Masahide Harada , Takayuki Oku, Kazuhiko Soyama, Shigeyuki Miyajima , Mutsuo Hidaka , Soh Y. Suzuki, Manobu M. Tanaka , Shuichi Kawamata and Takekazu Ishida
  • Journal Title: Journal of Physics: Conference Series in press Volume: -
  • Peer Reviewed / Open Access / Int'l Joint Research
• [Journal Article] Narrow-area Bragg-edge transmission of iron samples using superconducting neutron sensor (2022)
  • Author(s): The Dang Vu, Hiroaki Shishido, Kazuya Aizawa, Takayuki Oku, Kenichi Oikawa, Masahide Harada, Kenji M. Kojima, Shigeyuki Miyajima, Kazuhiko Soyama, Tomio Koyama, Mutsuo Hidaka, Soh Y. Suzuki, Manobu M. Tanaka, Alex Malins, Masahiko Machida and Takekazu Ishida
  • Journal Title: Journal of Physics: Conference Series Volume: -
  • Peer Reviewed / Open Access / Int'l Joint Research
• [Journal Article] Neutron Imaging toward Epithermal Regime using a Delay Line Current-Biased Kinetic-Inductance Detector (2022)
  • Author(s): Hiroaki Shishido , The Dang Vu , Kazuya Aizawa , Kenji M. Kojima , Tomio Koyama, Kenichi Oikawa , Masahide Harada , Takayuki Oku, Kazuhiko Soyama, Shigeyuki Miyajima, Mutsuo Hidaka , Soh Y. Suzuki, Manobu M. Tanaka, Shuichi Kawamata and Takekazu Ishida
  • Journal Title: Journal of Physics: Conference Series Volume: -
  • Peer Reviewed / Open Access / Int'l Joint Research
• [Journal Article] High Spatial Resolution Neutron Transmission Imaging Using a Superconducting Two-Dimensional Detector (2021)
  • Author(s): Shishido Hiroaki、Nishimura Kazuma、Vu The Dang、Aizawa Kazuya、Kojima Kenji M.、Koyama Tomio、Oikawa Kenichi、Harada Masahide、Oku Takayuki、Soyama Kazuhiko、Miyajima Shigeyuki、Hidaka Mutsuo、Suzuki Soh Y.、Tanaka Manobu M.、Kawamata Shuichi、Ishida Takekazu
  • Journal Title: IEEE Transactions on Applied Superconductivity Volume: 31 Issue: 9 Pages: 1-5
  • DOI: 10.1109/tasc.2021.3111396
  • Peer Reviewed / Int'l Joint Research
• [Presentation] Application of energy-resolving neutron imaging to major-component analyses of materials using four-channel superconducting detector (2023)
  • Author(s): The Dang Vu, Hiroaki Shishido, Kazuya Aizawa, Takayuki Oku, Kenichi Oikawa, Masahide Harada, Kenji M. Kojima, Shigeyuki Miyajima, Kazuhiko Soyama, Tomio Koyama, Mutsuo Hidaka, Soh Y. Suzuki, Manobu M. Tanaka, Masahiko Machida, Shuichi Kawamata, Takekazu Ishida
  • Organizer: The 4th International Conference on Engineering Physics, MEMS-Biosensors and Applications (4th ICEBA2023), Dec 8, 2023
  • Int'l Joint Research / Invited
• [Presentation] Neutron transmission imaging system with a superconducting kinetic inductance detector (2023)
  • Author(s): The Dang Vu, Hiroaki Shishido, Kazuya Aizawa, Takayuki Oku, Kenichi Oikawa, Masahide Harada, Kenji M. Kojima, Shigeyuki Miyajima, Kazuhiko Soyama, Tomio Koyama, Mutsuo Hidaka, Soh Y. Suzuki, Manobu M. Tanaka, Masahiko Machida, Shuichi Kawamata, Takekazu Ishida
  • Organizer: the 36th International Symposium on Superconductivity (ISS2023)
  • Int'l Joint Research
• [Presentation] Neutron Transmission CB-KID Imager Using Samples Placed at Room Temperature (2023)
  • Author(s): Ishida Takekazu、Vu The Dang、Shishido Hiroaki、Aizawa Kazuya、Oku Takayuki、Oikawa Kenichi、Harada Masahide、Kojima Kenji M.、Miyajima Shigeyuki、Koyama Tomio、Soyama Kazuhiko、Hidaka Mutsuo、Suzuki Soh Y.、Tanaka Manobu M.、Machida Masahiko、Kawamata Shuichi
  • Organizer: LTD20, the 20th International Conference on Low Temperature Detectors, Daejeon, South Korea, July 23-28, 2023.
  • Int'l Joint Research
• [Presentation] High-resolution Neutron Imaging under Pulsed Neutrons using Superconducting Detector (2023)
  • Author(s): Ishida Takekazu、Vu The Dang、Shishido Hiroaki、Aizawa Kazuya、Oku Takayuki、Oikawa Kenichi、Harada Masahide、Kojima Kenji M.、Miyajima Shigeyuki、Koyama Tomio、Soyama Kazuhiko、Hidaka Mutsuo、Suzuki Soh Y.、Tanaka Manobu M.、Machida Masahiko、Kawamata Shuichi
  • Organizer: The 18th International Superconductive Electronics Conference (ISEC 2023) Nanjing, China, fNov. 10th - 13th, 2023
  • Int'l Joint Research / Invited
• [Presentation] Neutron transmission imaging of room-temperature samples by a superconducting detector (2023)
  • Author(s): Ishida Takekazu、Vu The Dang、Shishido Hiroaki、Aizawa Kazuya、Oku Takayuki、Oikawa Kenichi、Harada Masahide、Kojima Kenji M.、Miyajima Shigeyuki、Koyama Tomio、Soyama Kazuhiko、Hidaka Mutsuo、Suzuki Soh Y.、Tanaka Manobu M.、Machida Masahiko、Kawamata Shuichi
  • Organizer: The 11th East Asia Symposium on Superconductor Electronics (EASSE 2023) in Okayama, 27-29 March 2023
  • Int'l Joint Research / Invited
• [Presentation] Experimental Studies on Spatial Resolution of a Delay-Line Current-Biased Kinetic-Inductance Detector (2022)
  • Author(s): The Dang Vu, Hiroaki Shishido, Kazuya Aizawa, Takayuki Oku, Kenichi Oikawa, Masahide Harada, Kenji M. Kojima, Shigeyuki Miyajima, Kazuhiko Soyama, Tomio Koyama, Mutsuo Hidaka, Soh Y. Suzuki, Manobu M. Tanaka, Masahiko Machida, Shuichi Kawamata and Takekazu Ishida
  • Organizer: the 3rd International Workshop on Engineering Physics, IC-MEMS-Sensors and Their Applications, HCM city, Viet Nam, November 25&26, 2022
  • Int'l Joint Research / Invited
• [Presentation] Superconducting neutron transmission imaging for investigating a sequential change in phase separations of low melting Wood’s metal (2022)
  • Author(s): The Dang Vu, Hiroaki Shishido, Kazuya Aizawa, Takayuki Oku, Kenichi Oikawa, Masahide Harada, Kenji M. Kojima, Shigeyuki Miyajima, Kazuhiko Soyama, Tomio Koyama, Mutsuo Hidaka, Soh Y. Suzuki, Manobu M. Tanaka, Masahiko Machida, Shuichi Kawamata and Takekazu Ishida
  • Organizer: The 35th International Symposium on Superconductivity (ISS2022)
  • Int'l Joint Research
• [Presentation] Crystalline Orientation of CaF2 window determined by Neutron Transmission Imaging using a Delay Line Current-Biased Kinetic-Inductance Detector (2022)
  • Author(s): Hiroaki Shishido, The Dang Vu , Kazuya Aizawa , Kenji M. Kojima , Tomio Koyama , Kenichi Oikawa, Masahide Harada , Takayuki Oku, Kazuhiko Soyama, Shigeyuki Miyajima , Mutsuo Hidaka , Soh Y. Suzuki, Manobu M. Tanaka , Shuichi Kawamata and Takekazu Ishida
  • Organizer: The 35th International Symposium on Superconductivity (ISS2022)
  • Int'l Joint Research
• [Presentation] Narrow-area Bragg-edge transmission of iron samples using superconducting neutron sensor (2021)
  • Author(s): The Dang Vu
  • Organizer: The 34th International Symposium on Superconductivity (ISS2021)
• [Presentation] Neutron Imaging toward Epithermal Regime using a Delay Line Current-Biased Kinetic-Inductance Detector (2021)
  • Author(s): Hiroaki Shishido
  • Organizer: The 34th International Symposium on Superconductivity (ISS2021)