skip to main content
OSTI.GOV title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: Neutron-fragment and Neutron-neutron Correlations in Low-energy Fission

Journal Article · · Nuclear Data Sheets

A computational method has been developed to simulate neutron emission from thermal-neutron induced fission of {sup 235}U and from spontaneous fission of {sup 252}Cf. Measured pre-emission mass-yield curves, average total kinetic energies and their variances, both as functions of mass split, are used to obtain a representation of the distribution of fragment velocities. Measured average neutron multiplicities as a function of mass split and their dependence on total kinetic energy are used. Simulations can be made to reproduce measured factorial moments of neutron-multiplicity distributions with only minor empirical adjustments to some experimental inputs. The neutron-emission spectra in the rest-frame of the fragments are highly constrained by ENDF/B-VII.1 prompt-fission neutron-spectra evaluations. The n-f correlation measurements of Vorobyev et al. (2010) are consistent with predictions where all neutrons are assumed to be evaporated isotropically from the rest frame of fully accelerated fragments. Measured n-f and n-n correlations of others are a little weaker than the predictions presented here. These weaker correlations could be used to infer a weak scission-neutron source. However, the effect of neutron scattering on the experimental results must be studied in detail before moving away from a null hypothesis that all neutrons are evaporated from the fragments.

OSTI ID:
22572375
Journal Information:
Nuclear Data Sheets, Vol. 131; Other Information: Copyright (c) 2015 Elsevier Science B.V., Amsterdam, The Netherlands, All rights reserved.; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0090-3752
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English