McMaster hosts first Neutrons Canada board meeting

McMaster welcomed some of the country’s top leaders in materials and nuclear research to campus this week for Neutrons Canada’s first board meeting.

Established in November 2022, Neutrons Canada is a not-for-profit research organization focused on governing, managing and representing Canada’s infrastructure program for neutron beam research and development. The organization – with an independent board of directors drawn from government, industry and academic sectors – replaces the Canadian Neutron Initiative (CNI), led by McMaster University and the University of Saskatchewan.

As a founding member of Neutrons Canada, McMaster will play a central role in advancing access to neutron beam infrastructure for Canadian researchers and enabling them to collaborate internationally. McMaster physicist Bruce Gaulin is leading a $47-million Canada Foundation for Innovation-funded, multi-institutional project to develop a national neutron beam user laboratory and ensure access to international sources for Canadian scientists. The lab will consist of a new guide-hall, two new beamlines and three new neutron beam instruments to support materials research in clean energy, health and medicine, safety and security.

Dave Tucker, McMaster’s assistant vice-president, research (nuclear) says the meeting represented an exciting start for Neutrons Canada and gave board members an opportunity to learn more about McMaster’s nuclear facilities and explore the neutron beam projects already underway on campus.

“As Canada’s nuclear university, McMaster is proud to be part of this collaborative initiative to enhance our national neutron beam infrastructure. We’re home to facilities that will be a major part of Neutrons Canada’s future and will ensure our researchers have access to the advanced technologies they need to make ground-breaking discoveries with tremendous impacts in science, health, environment and the economy,” he says.

Tucker also salutes Dr. John Barrett, President of Portolan Global Inc., on being appointed the inaugural Board Chair of Neutrons Canada, noting the organization is in great hands under his leadership.

Barrett is the former President and CEO of the Canadian Nuclear Association (2013-2019). He previously served as Canada’s Ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency and has held executive positions in the Privy Council Office, Office of the Governor General of Canada, and Department of National Defense.

“Dr. Barrett’s experience and expertise in diplomacy and international governance in nuclear technology and his knowledge of the entire sector will ensure Canada’s neutron science community remains competitive on the global stage,” says Tucker.

The board toured the McMaster Nuclear Reactor for a demonstration of the reactor’s neutron scattering capabilities. McMaster’s 5MW nuclear reactor produces neutrons, which can be focused into beams and passed through a wide range of samples, including metals, polymers and biomaterials. Neutrons can penetrate deep into matter, enabling researchers to characterize the interior structures of a wide variety of substances at the atomic level.

The group also visited the guide hall where the McMaster Small Angle Neutron Scattering (MacSANS) instrument is being assembled by a team of researchers led by Bruce Gaulin. MacSANS will be used to study a broad range of nanostructured materials by both McMaster researchers and visiting scientists from all over Canada.