Neutron Transmission of a Single-Crystal MgO Filter

The neutron transmission probability through a single-crystal MgO filter has been measured at both liquid-nitrogen (77 K) and room (300 K) temperatures, as a function of wavelength, using a pulsed neutron source. The data show that a cooled MgO filter is superior to room-temperature sapphire for both thermal and cold neutrons, principally because the absorption probability is reduced by a factor of three at long wavelengths.