HNPS Advances in Nuclear Physics Banner

Diamond Detector Development for Neutron Measurements at the n_TOF Facility (CERN)

pdf
Published: Feb 24, 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.12681/hnpsanp.8965
Keywords:
Diamond detector white neutron beam thermal neutrons NEAR station n_TOF EAR2
Kalliopi Kaperoni
NTUA
https://orcid.org/0009-0004-7051-6245
Maria Diakaki
NTUA
Michael Bacak
TU Wienn
Christina Weiss
TU Wienn, CIVIDEC Instrumentation
Erich Griesmayer
TU Wienn, CIVIDEC Instrumentation
Erwin Jericha
TU Wienn
Mike Kokkoris
Ioannis Kopsalis
Julian Melbinger
TU Wienn, CIVIDEC Instrumentation
n_TOF Collaboration
European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN)
Abstract

Diamond is a highly promising material for neutron detection due to its radiation hardness, fast response, and high signal-to-noise ratio. A single-crystal diamond (sCVD) detector with a 6LiF conversion layer was developed in collaboration with CIVIDEC Instrumentation for in-beam measurements at the n_TOF facility at CERN. The effect of the diamond detector thickness on the response to 𝛾-rays was studied with a 137Cs source. Additionally, measurements with thermal neutrons at the TRIGA reactor (Atominstitut Vienna) confirmed the proper detection of the recoils of the 6Li(n,t)4He reaction, by the developed detection system. In-beam tests at the EAR2 experimental area demonstrated stable performance under a white neutron beam, while the final  easurement at the NEAR station validated the detector’s suitability for neutron flux characterization in challenging high-radiation environments.

Article Details
  • Section
  • Oral contributions
Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

References
P.W. May. “Diamond thin films: a 21st-century material”. In: Phil. Trans. Roy. Soc. A 358 (2000), pp. 473–495. doi: 10.1098/rsta.2000.0542
M. Angelone and C. Verona. “Properties of Diamond-Based Neutron Detectors Operated in Harsh Environments”. In: J. Nucl. Eng. 2 (2021), pp. 422–470. doi: 10.3390/jne2040032
N. Patronis et al. The CERN n TOF NEAR station for astrophysics- and application-related neutron activation measurements. 2022. doi: 10.48550/arXiv.2209.04443. arXiv: 2209.04443 [physics.ins-det]
CIVIDEC Instrumentation GmbH. CIVIDEC Instrumentation. Accessed: 2025-10-29. 2025. url: https://cividec.at/
R. Khan and Vienna University of Technology (Austria). Neutronics analysis of the TRIGA Mark II reactor core and its experimental facilities. Jan. 2025
R. Khan, S. Karimzadeh, and H. Böck. “TRIGA fuel burn-up calculations and its confirmation”. In: Nucl. Eng. Des. 240 (2010), pp. 1043–1049. issn: 0029-5493. doi: 10.1016/j.nucengdes.2010.01.009
P. Kavrigin. “Neutron spectroscopy with sCVD diamond detectors”. Available at: https://repositum.tuwien.at/handle/20.500.12708/78506. PhD thesis. TU Wien, 2018
K. Kaperoni, M. Diakaki, M. Kokkoris, M. Axiotis, A. Ziagkova, C. Weiss, and R. Vlastou. “Semiconductor Detector Study for Detecting Fusion Neutrons using Geant4 Simulations”. In: HNPS Adv. Nucl. Phys. 29 (2023), pp. 58–65. doi: 10.12681/hnpsanp.5184.
C. Rubbia et al. A high resolution spallation driven facility at the CERN-PS to measure neutron cross sections in the interval from 1 eV to 250 MeV. CERN-LHC-98-002-EET-Add.1. 1998. url: https://cds.cern.ch/record/363828
R. Esposito et al. “Design of the third-generation lead-based neutron spallation target for the neutron time-of-flight facility at CERN”. In: Phys. Rev. Acc. Beams 24, 093001 (Sept. 2021), p. 093001. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevAccelBeams.24.093001
C. Guerrero et al. “Performance of the neutron time-of-flight facility n_TOF at CERN”. In: Eur. Phys. J. A 49 (2013), p. 27. doi: 10.1140/epja/i2013-13027-6
C. Weiss et al. “The new vertical neutron beam line at the CERN n_TOF facility design and outlook on the performance”. In: Nucl. Instr. Meth. Phys. Res. A 799 (2015), pp. 90–98. doi: 10.1016/j.nima.2015.07.027
M.E. Stamati, P. Torres-Sánchez et al. “The n_TOF NEAR Station Commissioning and First Physics Case”. In: EPJ Web. Conf. 284 (2023). 15th International Conference on Nuclear Data for Science and Technology (ND2022), Section: Experimental Facilities, p. 06009. doi: 10.1051/epjconf/202328406009
M. Sabaté-Gilarte, M. Barbagallo, N. Colonna, and et al. “High-accuracy determination of the neutron flux in the new experimental area n_TOF-EAR2 at CERN”. In: Eur. Phys. J. A 53.10 (2017), p. 210. doi: 10.1140/epja/i2017-12392-4
K. Kaperoni et al. “Novel diamond detector development for harsh neutron flux environments”. In: Radiation Applications Conference Proceedings 8 (2023), pp. 79–83. doi: 10.37392/RapProc.2023.16. url: https://www.rap-proceedings.org/paper.php?id=125