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The cross section of the 89 Y(n, γ ) reaction has important implications in nuclear astrophysics and for advanced nuclear technology. Given its neutron magic number N = 50 and a consequent small neutron capture cross section, 89 Y represents one of the key nuclides for the stellar s-process. It acts as a bottleneck in the neutron capture chain between the Fe seed and the heavier elements. Moreover, it is located at the overlapping region, where both the weak and main s-process components take place. 89 Y, the only stable yttrium isotope, is also used in innovative nuclear reactors. Neutron capture and transmission measurements were performed at the time-of-flight facilities n_TOF at CERN and GELINA at JRC-Geel. Resonance parameters of individual resonances were extracted from a resonance analysis of the experimental transmission and capture yields, up to a neutron incident energy of 95 keV. Even though a comparison with results reported in the literature shows differences in resonance parameters, the present data are consistent with the Maxwellian averaged cross section suggested by the astrophysical database KADoNiS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A measurement campaign to determine neutron induced fission cross sections of 240 Pu and 242 Pu at 2.51 and 14.83 MeV has been carried out at the 3.7 MV Van De Graaff linear accelerator at Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB) in Braunschweig. Two identical Frisch Grid fission chambers, housing back to back a 238 U and a A Pu fertile sample (A = 240 or A = 242), were employed to detect the total fission yield. The neutron fluence was measured with the recoil proton telescope (T1) (Dangendorf et al. Nucl Instrum Methods Phys Res A 469:205–215, 2001), which is the German primary standard for neutron fluence measurements. The two measurements were related using a de Pangher long counter (Nolte and Thomas Metrologia 48:274–291, 2011) and the integrated beam current as monitors. The experimental results have an average uncertainty of 3–4% both at 2.51 MeV and at 14.83 MeV and have been compared to the data available in literature. The employed set-up allowed measurements of 238 U σ (n , f) in parallel. The results confirm the most recent standard libraries at 2.51 and 14.83 MeV. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Neutron-induced fission reactions play a crucial role in a variety of fields of fundamental and applied nuclear science. In basic nuclear physics they provide important information on properties of nuclear matter, while in nuclear technology they are at the basis of present and future reactor designs. Finally, there is a renewed interest in fission reactions in nuclear astrophysics due to the multi-messenger observation of neutron star mergers and the important role played by fission recycling in r-process nucleosynthesis. Although studied for several decades, many fundamental questions still remain on fission reactions, while modern applications and the development of more reliable nuclear models require high-accuracy and consistent experimental data on fission cross sections and other fission observables. To address these needs, an extensive fission research programme has been carried out at the n_TOF neutron time-of-flight facility at CERN during the last 18 years, taking advantage of the high energy resolution, high luminosity and wide energy range of the neutron beam, as well as of the detection and data acquisition systems designed for this purpose. While long-lived isotopes are studied on the 185 m long flight-path, the recent construction of a second experimental area at a distance of about 19 m has opened the way to challenging measurements of short-lived actinides. This article provides an overview of the n_TOF experimental programme on neutron-induced fission reactions along with the main characteristics of the facility, the various detection systems and data analysis techniques used. The most important results on several major and minor actinides obtained so far and the future perspectives of fission measurements at n_TOF are presented and discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]