Neutron radiography
Neutron beams - Trace analysis, imaging and medicine

As neutrons interact with matter in very different ways to electromagnetic radiation, so too does their transmission (figure 5). In particular, neutrons easily penetrate many metal walls, and are highly sensitive to the presence of hydrogen. They can therefore be used for non-destructive testing, by direct radiography (neutronography) of large, complex devices with buried components.

Intense neutron beams transported by neutron guides far from the reactor provide background-free images. Neutronography facilities built directly onto a channel in a reactor enable gamma radiography or mixed gamma + neutron radiography to be carried out by filtering the neutrons.