A single-crystal diamond-based thermal neutron beam monitor for instruments at pulsed neutron sources

Single-crystal diamond detectors manufactured through a Chemical Vapour Deposition (CVD) technique are recent technology devices that have been employed in reactor and Tokamak environments in order to detect both thermal and almost monochromatic 14 MeV neutrons produced in deuterium–tritium (d–t) nuclear fusion reactions. Their robustness and compactness are the key features that can be exploited for different applications as well. Aim of the present experimental investigation is the assessment of the performance of a diamond detector as a thermal neutron beam monitor at pulsed neutron sources. To this aim, a test measurement was carried out on the Italian Neutron Experimental Station (INES) beam line at the ISIS spallation neutron source (Great Britain). The experiment has shown the capability of these devices to work at a pulsed neutron source for beam monitoring purposes. Other interesting possible applications are also suggested.