Search

Radiative strength functions in 152,154Eu nuclei for γ-ray energies below 6 MeV have been investigated. Neutron capture for incident neutron energies <1eV up to 100 keV has been measured for 151,153Eu targets. Properties of γ decay of neutron resonances in 152,154Eu nuclei are examined. The results of measurements are compared to outcome of simulation of γ cascades based on various models for the radiative strength function. Comparison between experimental data and simulation suggests existence of the low-energy resonance in these two nuclei. © 2006 American Institute of Physics [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Detector for Advanced Neutron Capture Experiments (DANCE) at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) was used for a neutron capture cross section measurement on 241Am. The high granularity of the DANCE array (160 BaF2 detectors in a 4π geometry) enables an efficient detection of prompt gamma rays following neutron capture. The preliminary results on the 241Am(n,γ) cross section are presented from 0.02 eV to 300 keV. The cross section at thermal energy En = 0.0253 eV was determined to be 665±33 barns. Resonance parameters were obtained using the SAMMY7 fit to the measured cross section in the resonance region. Significant discrepancies were found between our results and data evaluations for the first three lowest lying resonances. The cross section for neutrons with En>l keV agrees well with the ENDF/B-VII.0 and JENDL-3.3 evaluations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Neutron capture cross section measurements on many of the actinides are complicated by low-energy neutron-induced fission, which competes with neutron capture to varying degrees depending on the nuclide of interest. Measurements of neutron capture on 235U using the Detector for Advanced Neutron Capture Experiments (DANCE) have shown that we can partially resolve capture from fission events based on total photon calorimetry (i.e. total γ-ray energy and γ-ray multiplicity per event). The addition of a fission-tagging detector to the DANCE array will greatly improve our ability to separate these two competing processes so that improved neutron capture and (n,γ)/(n,fission) cross section ratio measurements can be obtained. The addition of a fission-tagging detector to the DANCE array will also provide a means to study several important issues associated with neutron-induced fission, including (n,fission) cross sections as a function of incident neutron energy, and total energy and multiplicity of prompt fission photons. We have focused on two detector designs with complementary capabilities, a parallel-plate avalanche counter and an array of solar cells. © 2006 American Institute of Physics [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]