Transmission of neutrons through non-periodic magnetic lattices

We consider the problem of comparing the suitability of various magnetic la ttices for the spin polarization of neutrons. To do this, we use a discrete model to construct measures of transmission through one-dimensional lattic es. We examine the model for non-periodic lattices that are generated from sequences and compare them with a periodic lattice. The periodic lattice gi ves rise to broader regions of spin polarization so that it should be easie r to produce polarized beams, whereas the non-periodic sequences produce na rrow regions more suitable for fine control. The most appropriate measure t o illustrate these effects is seen to be that which simply measures the dif ference between spin + and spin - transmission. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science L td. All rights reserved.