Non-uniform transmission of supermirror devices for neutron polarization

Polarizing supermirrors have been widely used in neutron scattering facilities where they have been employed as neutron spin filters to polarize neutron beams as well as analyze their polarization. In the past, the performance of polarizing supermirrors has been limited by their small acceptance angle, which made them less suitable for use at short wavelengths or with highly divergent beams. Recent advances in supermirror coatings have led to an array of devices designed to, at least partially, overcome this limitation. V-polarizers and multi-channel polarizers have been employed in several different types of neutron scattering instruments. However, our observations in the field where these types of polarizers are in use have raised concerns about their performance. In this paper, we report on detailed Monte-Carlo simulations performed on a multi-channel polarizer used on a prototype Spin-Echo Small Angle Neutron Scattering (SESANS) instrument to better understand its performance. Our results show that careful simulations of polarizers based on mirror reflection are needed to determine whether a particular design is suitable for SESANS applications.