Cosmogenic radionuclide production modeling with Geant4: Experimental benchmarking and application to nuclear spectroscopy of asteroid (16) Psyche
- Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Lab., Laurel, MD (United States)
- Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
- California Institute of Technology (CalTech), Pasadena, CA (United States). Jet Propulsion Lab. (JPL)
Measurements of gamma-ray emissions from the decay of cosmogenic radionuclides provide an opportunity to characterize the elemental composition of a terrestrial planet or asteroid surface. We report on the development of a Geant4 application which models cosmogenic radionuclide production on metal-rich surfaces. The model was benchmarked using measurements of radionuclides produced during 1 GeV proton irradiation of a target made from the Campo del Cielo iron meteorite. The gamma-ray emitting radionuclides 58Co, 57Co, 56Co, 54Mn, 52Mn, 51Cr, 48V, 46Sc and 22Na were observed following the irradiation. Our model reproduced the measured radionuclide production rates to within a factor of 2.5 or better. All but two of the elements (54Mn, 46Sc) have a perfect model-to-data match within their measurement uncertainties. The benchmarked model was used to predict cosmogenic radionuclide production on a large (~100-km radius) metal-rich asteroid. The results are relevant for planned gamma-ray measurements of the metallic asteroid (16) Psyche, which will be visited by the Psyche spacecraft in 2026. We found that galactic-proton-induced radionuclide decay is unlikely to be observed by the Psyche Gamma-Ray Spectrometer (GRS), however an intense solar proton event (>2×106 protons cm-2 over <5 days) will produce measurable quantities of radioisotopes. Measurements of these radioisotopes could provide an independent method of determining the Ni-to-Fe ratio of materials at Psyche’s surface. Such an analysis will require the use of radionuclide production cross sections to convert GRS-measured cosmogenic radionuclide decay rates to elemental composition information with the ~10% precision required for planetary geochemical studies.
- Research Organization:
- Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA)
- Grant/Contract Number:
- AC52-07NA27344
- OSTI ID:
- 1631525
- Report Number(s):
- LLNL-JRNL-809380; 1015484; TRN: US2200977
- Journal Information:
- Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section B: Beam Interactions with Materials and Atoms, Vol. 446, Issue C; ISSN 0168-583X
- Publisher:
- ElsevierCopyright Statement
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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