Exploring matter with neutrons. highlights in research at the ILL

Neutrons are excellent probes of all kinds of matter. They are more penetrating than X-rays and provide complementary information on structure and dynamics. There are many variations of the neutron scattering process which gives the technique its wide applicability to many kinds of materials. This report briefly reviews the latest uses of this technique applied to: i) Biology (cellulose, biological membranes and lipid membranes), ii) Soft matter (ultrathin polymer films, the flowing of detergents and pastes), iii) Liquids and glasses (glass transition, sound propagation in water), iv) Chemistry and structure (the many phases of water), v) Materials (alloys, helium bubbles in steel), vi) Thin films (magnetic spirals in very thin films, giant magnetoresistance), vii) Magnetism (molecular magnets, magnetic phase transitions, glassy magnets), and viii) superfluid helium in porous media. (A.C.)