Magnetic scattering and polarized neutrons

The last few years have witnessed considerable progress in the use of polarized neutron beam techniques for the study of condensed matter physics. Among the methods actively pursued at present are neutron spin echo as pioneered by Mezei for ultra high resolution and the energy integrated magnetic scattering measurement technique developed by Brown and Ziebeck. We have concentrated on a medium resolution range utilizing 5 to 100 MeV polarized neutrons. In this review we discuss recent work at Brookhaven on the development of the triple axis neutron scattering technique with polarization analysis. We have now reached the stage where quantitative characterization, in absolute units, can be done for a wide range of energy and momentum transfers in paramagnetic scattering. We will discuss some examples of recent inelastic measurements on 3d ferromagnets as well as diffraction studies of multibilayer thin film structures