Castaway

ISIS is a particle physics laboratory in Oxfordshire, U.K. that houses a synchrotron — or particle accelerator — which creates beams of neutrons and muons traveling at 84 percent of light speed. Scientists use the beams to explore physics, chemistry, biology and other fields on a subatomic level. The synchrotron's neutron beam has a special ability to view the atomic world in a detailed, non-destructive way. This image illustrates the science that can be done at ISIS.

Neutron reflectivity data reveals a unique multilayer landscape. Soft lithography is an attractive option for patterning large areas of material in a uniform and cost effective manner. By using the self assembly of polystyrene spheres, it is possible to form highly regular templates that can then be used as masks to deposit metallic multilayer systems. After deposition and characterisation by conventional magnetometry and microscopy, the influence of this physical in-plane ordering on the magnetic structure can be studied by polarised neutron reflectometry to reveal details that cannot be measured by other techniques.

--LiveScience Staff