Page 22 - Summer 2024

ADVANCES IN
NPL TO JOIN CERN NEUTRON
TIME-OF-FLIGHT FACILITY
The National Physical Laboratory has signed
a Memorandum of Understanding with the
European Laboratory for Particle Physics
(CERN) to join its neutron time-of-flight facility,
n_TOF in Geneva.
This is a world-leading facility for neutron
measurements that uses high-intensity neutron
beams with a wide energy range to precisely
measure neutron-related processes including
neutron-nucleus interactions.
The role of NPL will be specifically to perform
accurate cross-section measurements of
neutron-induced nuclear reactions relevant to
the development of new nuclear technologies
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including advanced nuclear reactors (Gen
IV) and fuel cycles. Of particular interest are
reactions that produce hydrogen, tritium and
helium in a range of materials, as this data
underpins the development of tritium breeding
blankets, plasma-facing armor components,
and reactor component lifetime against
radiation damage. These are all notably key to
the commercialisation of nuclear fusion.
Specific technical challenges associated with
generating electricity from nuclear fusion include
material issues resulting from the intense flux of
neutrons and creating the conditions needed to
achieve ignition.
In collaboration with other n_TOF members,
the NPL team hopes to open the way for a
dedicated experimental programme that will
lead to more reliable simulation and operational
understanding of next-generation fission and
fusion reactors.
Reference: ‘NPL partners with CERN’, Instrumentation Monthly, May
2024, p.5
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QUANTUM COMPUTING
AT MANCHESTER
UNIVERSITY
Ultra-pure Form of Silicon developed
The University of Manchester in collaboration
with the University of Melbourne, Australia,
has produced an enhanced, ultra-pure form of
silicon that is set to allow for the construction of
high-performance qubit devices, significantly
advancing quantum computing technology.
One of the biggest challenges in the
development of quantum computers is
that qubits, the building blocks of quantum
computing, are highly sensitive and require
a stable environment in order to retain the
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information that they hold. Even tiny changes
in their environment, including temperature
fluctuations, can cause computer errors.
Another major challenge is one of scale both in
terms of physical size and in processing power.
Ten qubits have the same processing power as
1,024 bits in a standard computer and so can
occupy a much smaller volume. It is estimated
that a fully performing quantum computer
needs around a million qubits, which provides a
capability that is not feasible with any traditional
computer.
The semiconducting properties of silicon make it
the material of choice for traditional computing,
but natural silicon is composed of three atoms
of different mass, namely silicon 28, silicon 29
and silicon 30. Silicon 29, however, which makes
up about 5 per cent of silicon, causes a ‘nuclear
flip flopping’ effect that results in the qubit losing
information.
In a breakthrough at the University of
Manchester scientists have managed to remove
the silicon 29 and 30 atoms, so as to create the
world’s purest silicon that will enable the creation
of one million qubits fabricated to the size of a
pin head.
Richard Curry, Professor of Advanced Electronic
Materials at the University of Manchester,
explains:
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