This produces one or more gamma-rays of specific energies dependent on the element that the neutron scatters off of.
This technique has applications in agriculture (e.g. soil surveys), national security (counter-terrorism and weapons surveillance), and diamond detection,[1] among other areas.
When an alpha particle and gamma-ray are observed within a very small window of time (under 80 ns[3]), they are considered to originate from the same fusion reaction.
The energies of the gamma-rays are unique to a specific nucleus, and so may be used to identify the element involved in the interaction.
Over many observed interactions, a three-dimensional mapping of elements within the object of interest is created.
[5] Associated particle imaging has uses in basic science, notably in the accurate measurement of quantities related to neutron inelastic scattering for nuclear data studies.