Buy article online - an online subscription or single-article purchase is required to access this article.
Download citation
Download citation
link to html
A method is described for determining the neutron scattering length density distribution of a molecular-scale object directly from phase-sensitive small-angle neutron scattering (SANS). The structure factor amplitude is obtained through the use of a reference structure for a collection of randomly oriented, identical objects in the dilute solution limit (negligible interparticle correlations). This work extends some of the techniques developed in recent years for phase-sensitive specular neutron reflectometry to SANS, although the approach presented here is applicable only within the range of validity of the Born approximation. The scattering object is treated as a composite consisting of an `unknown' part of interest plus a reference component, the real-space structure of the latter being completely known. If, for example, the reference part of the object is composed of a ferromagnetic material (the magnetization of which is saturated), then polarized neutron beams can be employed to extract the information required for an unambiguous inversion of the scattering data without chemical substitution. The angular averaging over all possible relative orientations of the composite object does not result in a cancellation of the phase information since the reference and unknown parts of each object have a fixed spatial relationship. The new approach proposed here is not simply another type of isomorphic substitution, but also involves a reformulation of the underlying mathematical analysis of this particular scattering problem.

Subscribe to Journal of Applied Crystallography

The full text of this article is available to subscribers to the journal.

If you have already registered and are using a computer listed in your registration details, please email support@iucr.org for assistance.

Buy online

You may purchase this article in PDF and/or HTML formats. For purchasers in the European Community who do not have a VAT number, VAT will be added at the local rate. Payments to the IUCr are handled by WorldPay, who will accept payment by credit card in several currencies. To purchase the article, please complete the form below (fields marked * are required), and then click on `Continue'.
E-mail address* 
Repeat e-mail address* 
(for error checking) 

Format*   PDF (US $40)
   HTML (US $40)
   PDF+HTML (US $50)
In order for VAT to be shown for your country javascript needs to be enabled.

VAT number 
(non-UK EC countries only) 
Country* 
 

Terms and conditions of use
Contact us

Follow J. Appl. Cryst.
Sign up for e-alerts
Follow J. Appl. Cryst. on Twitter
Follow us on facebook
Sign up for RSS feeds