Upgrade of the Cold Neutron Imaging Instrument, Phase Grating Roll Alignment System
Contract Overview
Solicitation details, issuing organization, response deadlines, documents, and interested companies for this government contract opportunity.
AI Contract Overview
The contract involves the procurement of three high precision rotation stages for the NIST neutron imaging team's far-field grating neutron interferometer, which aims to measure the projection of the pair correlation function, G(Z), of samples. The interferometer requires precise alignment of three silicon wafer gratings about the neutron beam's roll direction, with the ability to rotate a full 360 degrees at a resolution better than 0.00005 degrees. The gratings, etched with lines of approximately 1 micrometer period and 100 mm in diameter, must be mounted on stages that are lightweight—each less than 1 kg—to allow effective vertical translation and movement of one grating for measurement purposes. The system must maintain a clear aperture for the neutron beam to pass without attenuation, with supporting cabling, control hardware, and software included in the procurement. This solicitation, issued by the Department of Commerce’s NIST in Gaithersburg, Maryland, is part of an upgrade to the Phase Grating Roll Alignment System of the Cold Neutron Imaging Instrument. The contract response deadline is June 23, 2026, and the work is to be performed in Gaithersburg. The rotation stages must accommodate varying distances between gratings, including separations from 1 mm to 300 mm for two gratings, and up to 5 meters for the third, emphasizing the need for precise and stable control over a range of spatial configurations. The point of contact for this contract is Robert Singman.
General Info
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Place of Performance
Gaithersburg, MD, 20899, USASet-Aside
Timeline
Response Deadline
Organization & Contact Information
Full Description
The NIST neutron imaging team, in the Radiation Physics Division of the Physical Measurement Laboratory, is developing a far-field grating neutron interferometer to measure the projection of the pair correlation function, G(Z), of a sample of interest. This interferometer geometry requires precision alignment of 3 gratings about the roll direction of the neutron beam. Since G(Z) is a vector quantity, aligned perpendicular to the grating direction, the grating alignment stages need to be able to rotate a full 360°, with high resolution. The gratings are lines etched into silicon wafers, where the period of the lines is of order 1 micrometer and the wafers are 100 mm in diameter. The mass of a grating, including a holder is of order 100 g. The interferometer pattern is measured by translating one of the gratings, so that that mass of the alignment system must be kept to as low as achievable. For control hardware, the separation of two of the gratings along the beam ranges from 1 mm to 300 mm. The third grating is separated by up to 5 m. The overall grating alignment system requires translating the gratings in the vertical direction, requiring that the grating roll stages (which much also translate) be less than 1 kg in mass.
This procurement is to obtain quantity three high precision rotation stages (resolution better than 0.00005 degrees) with a clear aperture to allow the beam to pass unattenuated and required cabling, control hardware, and control software.