Parker Stewart F, Baker Peter J, McGreevy Robert
ISIS Neutron and Muon Source, STFC Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Chilton, Didcot OX11 0QX, U.K.
ACS Phys Chem Au. 2024 Jul 10;4(5):439-452. doi: 10.1021/acsphyschemau.4c00026. eCollection 2024 Sep 25.
Neutron scattering and muon spectroscopy are techniques that use subatomic particles to understand materials across a wide range of energy (μeV to tens of eV), length (Å to cm) and time (attosecond to hour) scales. The methods are widely used to study condensed phase materials in areas that span physics, chemistry, biology, engineering and cultural heritage. In this Perspective we consider three questions: (i) will neutron scattering and muon spectroscopy still be needed in the 2050s? (ii) What might the technology to produce neutron and muon beams look like in the 2050s? (iii) What will be the applications in the 2050s? Overall, the neutron/muon ecosystem in the 2050s will have less capacity than now, but greater capability because of the somewhat higher power sources, better instrumentation and data analysis.
中子散射和μ子光谱学是利用亚原子粒子来理解跨越广泛能量（μeV到几十eV）、长度（埃到厘米）和时间（阿秒到小时）尺度的材料的技术。这些方法被广泛用于研究凝聚态材料，涉及物理、化学、生物学、工程学和文化遗产等领域。在这篇观点文章中，我们思考三个问题：（i）到2050年代还会需要中子散射和μ子光谱学吗？（ii）2050年代产生中子束和μ子束的技术会是什么样子？（iii）2050年代会有哪些应用？总体而言，2050年代的中子/μ子生态系统的容量将比现在小，但由于电源功率略高、仪器和数据分析更好，其能力将更强。
