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Experiments with the natural uranium target assembly “QUINTA” exposed to 4 and 8 GeV deuteron beams of the Nuclotron accelerator at the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research (Dubna) are analyzed. The reaction rates of 27 Al(n,y1) 24 Na, 27 Al(n,y2) 22 Na and 27 Al(n,y3) 7 Be reactions with effective threshold energies of 5, 27, and 119 MeV were measured at both 4 GeV and 8 GeV deuteron beam energies. The average neutron fluxes between the effective threshold energies and the effective ends of the neutron spectra (which are 800 or 1000 MeV for 4 or 8 GeV deuterons) were determined. The evidence for the intensity shift of the neutron spectra to higher neutron energies with the increase of the deuteron energy from 4 GeV to 8 GeV was found from the ratios of the average neutron fluxes. The reaction rates and the average neutron fluxes were calculated with the MCNPX 2.7 code.

Neutron spectrum analyses of spallation neutrons are conducted in the accelerator-driven system (ADS) facility at the Kyoto University Critical Assembly (KUCA). High-energy protons (100 MeV) obtained from the fixed field alternating gradient accelerator are injected onto a tungsten target, whereby the spallation neutrons are generated. For neutronic characteristics of spallation neutrons, the reaction rates and the continuous energy distribution of spallation neutrons are measured by the foil activation method and by an organic liquid scintillator, respectively. Numerical calculations are executed by MCNPX with JENDL/HE-2007 and ENDF/B-VI libraries to evaluate the reaction rates of activation foils (bismuth and indium) set at the target and the continuous energy distribution of spallation neutrons set in front of the target. For the reaction rates by the foil activation method, the C/E values between the experiments and the calculations are found around a relative difference of 10%, except for some reactions. For continuous energy distribution by the organic liquid scintillator, the spallation neutrons are observed up to 45 MeV. From these results, the neutron spectrum information on the spallation neutrons generated at the target are attained successfully in injecting 100 MeV protons onto the tungsten target.

A compact device for monitoring of fast neutron fluxes is presented. The device is based on single crystal diamond obtained by the Chemical Vapor Deposition technique coupled to a uranium converter foil where neutron interaction results in emission of charged particles detected inside the diamond. Thermal and fast neutrons are detected using natural uranium containing both 235U and 238U. Biparametric (pulse height and time of flight) data collection was used at the ISIS pulsed neutron source to distinguish events from 235U, 238U and from carbon break-up reactions inside the diamond. © 2011 Elsevier B.V.