Collimated neutron probe for soil water content measurements

A collimated neutron probe was designed to enable mesurements in specific directions from the access tube. To determine the size and shape of soil volume affecting the neutron counts, experiments were conducted to evaluate: 1) the vertical distance of soil above and below the probe that influences neutron counts; 2) the horizontal distance away from the probe into the soil that influences neutron counts; 3) the angle of soil viewed by the probe from the collimator; and 4) the three-dimensional thermal-neutron density field. The vertical distance was ~0.5m, the horizontal distance was ~0.2m, and the angle of soil viewed by the probe from the collimator was ~120??. Thermal neutrons detected from distances or angles larger than these values influence the determination of relative water content by 5% or less. -from Authors