Editing Neutron diffraction (section)

== Comparison of neutron scattering, XRD and electron scattering ==
{| class="wikitable"
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!'''Feature'''
![[Neutron scattering|Neutron diffraction]]
|'''[[X-ray diffraction]]'''
!'''[[Electron scattering]]'''
|-
|'''Principle'''
|Interacts with atomic nuclei and magnetic moments enabling nuclear and magnetic scattering <ref name="Bacon-1975">{{Cite book |last=Bacon |first=George E. |title=Neutron diffraction |date=1975 |publisher=Clarendon Pr |isbn=978-0-19-851353-7 |edition=3 |series=Monographs on the physics and chemistry of materials |location=Oxford}}</ref>
|Scatter off [[electron cloud]] thus allowing probing of electron density.<ref name="Cullity-2001">{{Cite book |last1=Cullity |first1=B. D.|title=Elements of X-ray diffraction |last2=Stock |first2=Stuart R. |date=2001 |publisher=Prentice Hall |isbn=978-0-201-61091-8 |edition=3rd |location=Upper Saddle River, NJ}}</ref><ref name="Authier-2004">{{Cite book |last=Authier |first=André|title=Dynamical theory of x-ray diffraction |date=2004 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-852892-0 |edition=Revised |series=International Union of Crystallography monographs on crystallography |location=Oxford ; New York}}</ref>
|Scatter off electrostatic potential thus allowing probing of electron density.<ref name="Cowley-1995">{{Cite book |last=Cowley |first=J. M. |title=Diffraction physics |date=1995 |publisher=Elsevier |isbn=0-444-82218-6 |edition=3rd rev. |series=North-Holland personal library |location=New York}}</ref>
|-
|'''Penetration depth'''
|High (suitable to study bulk materials since neutrons penetrate deeply in)<ref name="Bacon-1975" />
|Moderate (good penetration but also absorption by heavy elements)<ref name="Cullity-2001" /><ref name="Authier-2004" />
|Low (suitable for surface studies since electrons are strongly absorbed) or quite deep depending upon the energy.<ref name="Cowley-1995" />
|-
|'''Sensitivity to light elements'''
|High (very sensitive to lighter elements like hydrogen or lithium) <ref name="Bacon-1975" />
|Low (poor sensitvity to lighter elements)<ref name="Cullity-2001" /><ref name="Authier-2004" />
|High (can detect lighter elements ).<ref name="Cowley-1995" />
|-
|'''Magnetic studies'''
|Excellent (can probe [[Magnetic structure|magnetic stucture]] and spin dynamics) <ref name="Bacon-1975" />
|Limited (require specialized techniques like resonance magnetic scattering)<ref name="Cullity-2001" /><ref name="Authier-2004" />
|Yields local information<ref name="Cowley-1995" />
|-
|'''Resolution'''
|High (depending on techniques and instrument) <ref name="Bacon-1975" />
|High (can yield very precise positions for crystal structure)<ref name="Cullity-2001" /><ref name="Authier-2004" />
|Very high (can achieve high resolution )<ref name="Squires">{{Cite book |last=Squires |first=Gordon Leslie |title=introduction to the Theory of Thermal Neutron Scattering}}</ref>
|-
|'''Sample environment'''
|Efficient (used to study samples in different environment) <ref name="Bacon-1975" />
|Efficient
|Limited (requires vacuum and thin samples)<ref name="Squires" />
|-
|'''Applications'''
|structure of materials and magnetic property of the material. <ref name="Bacon-1975" />
|[[X-ray crystallography]]<ref name="Cullity-2001" /><ref name="Authier-2004" />
|Used for bulk materials, surfaces, defects, see [[electron diffraction]]

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