Properties of the reaction 238U(n, f) at the vibrational resonances

Recent fission cross-section calculations for the reaction 238U(n, f ), based on an extended statistical model, predict a significant change of fission fragment properties, such as the mean mass by A = 1.5 and a notable increase in total kinetic energy in the region of the vibrational resonance at an incident neutron energy En = 0.9 MeV. This model includes individual fission cross-sections by the asymmetric standard 1 (S1) and standard 2 (S2) as well as the symmetric super-long (SL) mode. In order to verify the model predictions, a dedicated experiment on 238U has been carried out to measure fission-fragment mass yield distributions for incident neutron energies from En = 2.0 MeV down to 0.9 MeV, where the fission characteristics at the vibrational resonance at En = 0.9 MeV were investigated for the first time. The previously reported distinct structure in the angular anisotropy around En = 1.2 and 1.6 MeV wasobserved at En = 0.9 MeV as well. The predicted large changes in fission fragment mass yield and total kinetic energy could not be confirmed. In the resonance the mean total kinetic energy is only about 0.5 MeV higher than at En = 1.8 MeV. At the same time, a slight decrease of the mean heavy fragment mass was observed, probably indicating a slightly increased contribution of the S1 fission mode.