Neutron scattering instrumentation. A guide to future directions

Many of the neutron scattering instruments being designed or built now are the first generation of pulsed source instruments to provide nearly optimal scattering angle coverage with good spatial resolution in a single setting of the instrument while making full use of modern optics to maximize the useful flux on the sample. Spectacular gains have resulted from such optimization, but in most of these cases there is little room for further large improvements. However, other types of pulsed source instruments are currently less well optimized, and there is room for significant improvements in these types of pulsed source instruments. Several examples will illustrate these points. In the longer term, we can expect source strengths to continue to increase, but only slowly. However, we can expect new science and new ways of doing experiments to emerge. Many of these changes will be driven by enhancements in sample environment capabilities leading to more innovative sample conditions and to efficient parametric studies. Kinetic studies and parametric studies will take on much greater roles with the high data rates now available. Implications of these trends will be discussed. (author)