June 24 - 28, 2012
Georgetown University Hotel and Conference Center, Washington, DC
Hosted By: NIST Center for Neutron Research
Sponsored By: Neutron Scattering Society of America
This is the 6th conference in the series and will feature a combination of invited and contributed talks, poster sessions, tutorials and an industrial exhibit.
Summer School on the Fundamentals of Neutron Scattering
June 18 - 23, 2012
Immediately prior to ACNS 2012, the NIST Center for Neutron Research will hold the Summer School on the Fundamentals of Neutron Scattering. This year's summer school is devoted to methods and applications of small angle neutron scattering (SANS), neutron reflectometry (NR) and neutron spin echo (NSE) techniques. View complete details.
Program Co-chairs: Nitash Balsara & Stephan Rosenkranz
ACNS Outstanding Student Poster Presentation Prizes
The ACNS will award several prizes of $100 to students who present outstanding posters. During the process of submitting an abstract, authors were required to indicate that they were interested in being considered for these prizes.
- The presenter must be a graduate student, or within 2 years of their Ph.D graduation
- The work must be presented at the ACNS Meeting as a poster submission
The work to be presented and considered would have a significant portion carried out at a North American neutron scattering facility.
Complete information can be found on the NSSA website

Conference Chairs | Program Co-chairs
Conference Chairs
Julie Borchers
Organizing Committee Conference Chair
NIST Center for Neutron Research
Nitash Balsara
Program Committee Co-Chair
University of California, Berkeley
Stephan Rosenkranz
Program Committee Co-Chair
Argonne National Laboratory
Susan Krueger
Local Organizing Committee Conference Chair
NIST Center for Neutron Research
Bruce D. Gaulin
NSSA President
McMaster University
Program Sub-Committee
- Plenary and Prize Sessions
Stephan Rosenkranz (Argonne National Laboratory)
Nitash Balsara (Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory)
- Sources, Instrumentation and Software
Garrett Granroth (Oak Ridge National Laboratory)
Roger Pynn (Indiana University)
- Soft Condensed Matter
Lynn Walker (Carnegie Mellon University)
Megan Robertson (University of Houston)
Mike Kent (Sandia National Laboratory)
- Hard Condensed Matter
Jeff Lynn (National Institute of Standards and Technology)
Young Lee (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)
Michael Fitzsimmons (Los Alamos National Laboratory)
- Biology
William Heller (Oak Ridge National Laboratory)
David Worcester (University of Missouri, Columbia)
- Chemistry
Patrick Woodward (Ohio State University)
John Greedan (McMaster University)
- Energy and Engineering Applications
Mike Crawford (Du Pont)
Xun-Li Wang (Oak Ridge National Laboratory)
- Neutron Physics
Gordon Jones (Hamilton College)
Paul Huffman (North Carolina State University)
Program Co-chairs:
Nitash Balsara & Stephan Rosenkranz
- Plenary & Prize sessions (Invited Speakers ONLY)
Subcommittee:
- Stephan Rosenkranz (Argonne National Laboratory)
- Nitash Balsara (Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory)
Topics of interest include (but are not limited to): 1: Science policy and funding
2: Prizes
3: Hot topics
4: New science and/or instrumentation
- Sources, Instrumentation & Software
Subcommittee:
- Garrett Granroth (Oak Ridge National Laboratory)
- Roger Pynn (Indiana University)
Topics of interest include (but are not limited to): 1: Source Development
2: Analysis and simulation software
3: New instrumentation & concepts
4: Sample environments
5: Control software and hardware
6: Detectors
- Soft Condensed Matter
Subcommittee:
- Lynn Walker (Carnegie Mellon University)
- Megan Robertson (University of Houston)
- Mike Kent (Sandia National Laboratory)
Topics of interest include (but are not limited to): 1: Colloids and Gels
2: Surfaces and Interfaces
3: Polymer structure and dynamics
- Hard Condensed Matter
Subcommittee:
- Jeff Lynn (National Institute of Standards and Technology)
- Young Lee (Massachusets Institute of Technology)
- Michael Fitzsimmons (Los Alamos National Laboratory)
Topics of interest include (but are not limited to): 1: Quantum Magnetism
2: Superconductivity
3: Ferro-electricity & multiferroic materials
4: Strongly correlated systems
5: Thin films & artificially-structured materials
- Biology
Subcommittee:
- William Heller (Oak Ridge National Laboratory)
- David Worcester (University of Missouri, Columbia)
Topics of interest include (but are not limited to): 1: Protein Structures
2: Biological Molecules: structure and dynamics
3: Membranes & Biologically relevant materials
- Chemistry
Subcommittee:
- Patrick Woodward (Ohio State University)
- John Greedan (McMaster University)
Topics of interest include (but are not limited to): 1: Structure & dynamics of Micro-porous systems
2: Chemistry at surfaces
3: Earth Sciences & geochemistry
4: Spectroscopy & Quantum chemistry
5: Diffusion and Ionic conduction
- Energy and Engineering Applications
Subcommittee:
- Mike Crawford (DuPont)
- Xun-Li Wang (Oak Ridge National Laboratory)
Topics of interest include (but are not limited to): 1: Electrochemical systems (batteries, fuel cells)
2: Solar energy conversion
3: Residual strain
4: Imaging and radiography
- Neutron Physics
Subcommittee:
- Gordon Jones (Hamilton College)
- Paul Huffman (North Carolina State University)
Topics of interest include (but are not limited to): 1: Fundamental properties
2: Interferometry & quantum physics

Prize Winners | Plenary Speakers | Invited Speakers
Prize Winners
- Shull Prize
Robert Birgeneau - University of California, Berkeley
- Sustained Research
Gian Felcher - Argonne National Laboratory
- Science Prize
Guangyong Xu - Brookhaven National Laboratory
- Outstanding Student Research
Claire White - Los Alamos National Laboratory
Plenary Speakers
- Altaf Carim - OSTP
- Gerald Blazey - OSTP
- Leon Balents - University of California, Santa Barbara
- Tim Lodge - University of Minnesota
Invited Speakers
Sources, Instrumentation & Software
- Ke An - Oak Ridge National Laboratory (SNS)
- Rana Ashkar - Indiana University
- David Baxter - Indiana University
- Mark Bird - National High Magnetic Field Laboratory
- Wang Chun Chen - National Institute of Standards and Technology
- Mathieu Doucet - Oak Ridge National Laboratory (SNS)
- Nick Maliszewsky - National Institute of Standards and Technology (NCNR)
Soft Condensed Matter
- Sow-Hsin Chen - Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Ramanan Krishnamoorti - University of Houston
- Janna Maranas - Pennsylvania State University
- V. Prabhu - National Institute of Standards and Technology
- Danilo Pozzo - University of Washington
Hard Condensed Matter
- Pengcheng Dai - University of Tennessee
- Seung-Hun Lee - University of Virginia
- Christopher Leighton - University of Minnesota
- Kai Liu – University of California, Davis
- Yumi Ijiri - Oberlin College
- Marc Janoschek - Los Alamos National Laboratory
- Michael Norman - Argonne National Laboratory
- Daniel Pratt - Iowa State University & Ames National Laboratory
- William Ratcliff - National Institute of Standards and Technology (NCNR)
Biology
- Thad Harroun - Brock University
- Christopher J. Roberts - University of Delaware
- Isidro (Dan) Zarraga - Genentech
Chemistry
- Mario Bieringer - University of Manitoba
- Emil Bozin - Brookhaven National Laboratory
- Ashfia Huq - Oak Ridge National Laboratory
- Raul Lobo – University of Delaware
- Ram Seshadri - University of California, Santa Barbara
- Andrew Wills - University College London (UK)
Energy and Engineering Applications
- Sean Agnew - University of Virginia
- Brent Fultz - California Institute of Technology
- Zhili Feng - Oak Ridge National Laboratory
- John Tse - University of Saskatchewan
- Jihui Yang - University of Washington
Neutron Physics
- Michael Huber - National Institute of Standards and Technology
- Chen-Yu Liu - Indiana University
- Ruediger Picker - California Institute of Technology
Exhibit at American Conference on Neutron Scattering 2012
The sixth American Conference on Neutron Scattering (ACNS 2012) will provide essential information on the breadth and depth of current neutron-related research worldwide. A strong program of plenary, invited and contributed talks showcase recent scientific results in neutron science in a wide range of fields, including soft and hard condensed matter, biology, chemistry, energy and engineering applications, and neutron physics.
Make plans to exhibit at this unique event. Set for Monday, June 25 through Wednesday, June 27, the ACNS 2012 Exhibit offers the most direct access to researchers from around the world who are seeking technical solutions to their challenges. If you are involved in the neutron science field, then you need to be part of this conference.
Location
Georgetown University Hotel and Conference Center
3800 Reservoir Road NW
Washington, DC 20057, USA
Tel: 202.687.3200
Exhibit Dates
Monday, June 25 through Wednesday, June 27
Once the technical program has been finalized, exhibit hours will be set to maximize prime networking opportunities, including coffee breaks and evening poster sessions.
Exhibitor Move-in (tentative)
Sunday, June 24 | 12:00 pm – 4:00 pm
Expected Attendance: 300
Exhibit Space
Standard Booth - $1,500 ea.
Literature Display - $500 ea.
- Standard booths are 10’ wide x 8’ deep and include one 6-ft. skirted table and two chairs.
- Standard booth rental includes one technical badge to attend sessions only. Activities are not included but may be purchased separately.
- Literature displays are unmanned and will be located near registration and the exhibit hall. A technical badge is not included.
- Payment-in-full in US dollars must accompany application
- Exhibit space reservations may be obtained by completing the Exhibit Application and returning to Donna Watterson, Materials Research Society, at watterson@mrs.org
Conference Venue
Georgetown University Hotel and Conference Center
3800 Reservoir Road NW
Washington, DC 20057
Rate - $149 single/double
Deadline – May 25, 2012
Reservation number – 1-888-902-1606
Guests should identify themselves as members of the ACNS conference
RESERVE LODGING ONLINE
Georgetown, situated on the bluffs of Washington, D.C., is rich in history and culture, making it an ideal conference and vacation destination. Known for its high-end shopping and dining and quaint row houses overlooking Waterfront Harbor, Georgetown is truly unlike any other city in the U.S. Take a walk back in time on Georgetown’s famous 18th century cobblestone streets. Visit the palatial gardens at Dumbarton Oaks, a mansion built in 1800 for Senator John Calhoun. Add in all the sites and attractions found in nearby Washington, D.C., and you’ll never have a dull moment!
Sunday June 24th, 2012
Advances in Time-of-Flight Powder Diffraction
Description:
This tutorial will give a practical overview of the current state of the art in time-of-flight neutron powder diffraction. Topics include an introduction to powder diffraction and the pair distribution function analysis. These two introductory talks are followed by practical examples employing stroboscopic measurement as well as parametric studies.
Chair: Ashfia Huq
- 1:00 -1:45 pm Introduction to TOF Powder Diffraction
Ashfia Huq (Oak Ridge National Laboratory)
- 1:45 -2:30 pm Introduction to Pair Distribution Function analysis
Emil Bozin (Brookhaven National Laboratory)
- 2:30 - 3:00 pm Break
- 3:00 - 3:45 pm TOF Event data and stroboscopic diffraction measurements
Ke An (Oak Ridge National Laboratory)
- 3:45 - 4:30 pm Parametric neutron powder diffraction
TBD
- 4:30 pm Open discussion
Novel Techniques for Small Angle Neutron Scattering
Description:
The aim of this tutorial session is to highlight some of the novel, cutting edge advances in small-angle neutron scattering (SANS). It will feature four topics: rheological SANS under shear (RHEO-SANS), time-resolved SANS (TISANE), polarization analyzed SANS (PASANS) for magnetic systems, and SASSIE, an adaptable computational suite for solving complex structures. These lectures will include a lively mixture of experimental highlights, theory, supporting software, and practical hands-on information. The lecturers are expert users, and attendees are encouraged to engage them. There will be time set aside for lengthy discussion during the coffee break and the final open discussion period.
Who should attend:
Anyone interested in learning about some of the ongoing advances in SANS. In particular, there may be a number of conference attendees with experience in neutron scattering who would like the opportunity to learn about how some of these novel applications may be of use in their research. All levels of neutron scattering experience are welcome.
Chair: Kathryn Krycka
- 1:00 - 1:05 pm Brief Introduction
Kathryn Krycka (NIST Center for Neutron Research)
- 1:05 - 1:50 pm Rheo-SANS: Rheology and Shear Cells Designed for SANS
Norman Wagner (University of Delaware)
- 1:50 - 2:35 pm TISANE: Time-Resolved Small Angle Neutron Scattering
Roland Gähler (Institut Laue-Langevin)
- 2:35 - 3:00 pm Break
- 3:00 - 3:45 pm Polarization Analysis: Resolving Structural and Magnetic Scattering
Mike Fitzsimmons (Los Alamos National Laboratory)
- 3:45 - 4:30 pm SASSIE: Computation for Complex Structures
Hailiang Zhang (NIST Center for Neutron Research)
Nick Clark (NIST Center for Neutron Research)
- 4:30 Open discussion