Abstract

Ultracold neutrons (UCN) are neutrons with kinetic energies smaller than the Fermi potential of many construction materials; UCN can be trapped in a material bottle until their beta-decay 15 minutes later. The long trapping time brings about unique opportunities to perform precision measurements on fundamental properties of the neutron. I will review the physics of UCN, with the emphasis on their production. In particular, I will report the first experimental results of the production of UCN through magnetic inelastic scattering in the magnetic-rich phases of solid oxygen.