The 2024 Otto Kratky Prize was awarded to Dr Grace L. Causer, a Research Fellow of the ARC Centre of Excellence in Future Low-Energy Electronics Technologies within the School of Physics and Astronomy at Monash University. The prize was presented at the Small Angle Scattering Conference (SAS2024) for her work on the use of near-surface SANS for probing nanoscale chiral magnetic structures in thin films.
The award committee noted her lucid presentation of what remains a cutting-edge neutron scattering technique for elucidating exotic magnetic nanostructures in reduced dimensions.
Grace used the small angle neutron scattering instrument Bilby at the Australian Centre for Neutron Scattering to conduct her measurements, working together with instrument scientist Dr Anna Sokolova.
"Near-surface SANS is an innovative scattering geometry capable of resolving 1D, 2D or 3D structural, chemical, and magnetic correlations beneath the surfaces of thin films with nanometre resolution," said Dr Sokolova.
"This technique is likely to lead to several advances in the scientific understanding of magnetic phenomena near surfaces and their extension into nano-confined volumes, leading to breakthroughs in many areas of magnetism research," said Dr. Causer.
Proof-of-concept measurements published in the Journal of Applied Crystallography show data obtained in the near-surface SANS geometry are equivalent to data obtained in the conventional transmission SANS geometry, indicating the same magnetic periodicities are probed independent of the sample geometry.
