Neutron total and capture cross-section of /sup 232/Th from 0. 006 eV to 18 eV

Thesis/Dissertation · Mon Dec 31 23:00:00 EST 1979

OSTI ID:5160185

Little, R C

The neutron total cross section and the shape of the neutron capture cross section of /sup 232/Th have been measured in the energy range from 0.006 eV to 18 eV using the time-of-flight method. The 100-MeV electron linear accelerator at the RPI Gaerttner Laboratory was used as the source of neutrons. The neutron total cross section was obtained by performing transmission measurements using high-purity metallic /sup 232/Th samples and a /sup 6/Li-glass neutron detector. Results above 0.1 eV are in good agreement with the recent ENDF/B-V evaluation. Below 0.1 eV the measured total cross section is significantly lower than the evaluated total cross section. The effects of Bragg scattering are seen for neutron energies less than 0.05 eV. The shape of the neutron capture cross section was obtained from 0.009 eV to 18 eV. Capture measurements were performed with a ThO/sub 2/ sample and a 1.25-m-dia. liquid scintillator detector. The shape of the measured capture cross section above 0.1 eV is in reasonable agreement with a recent measurement at Brookhaven National Laboratory. The neutron capture cross section below 0.1 eV is found to increase less rapidly with decreasing neutron energy than 1/v. A simultaneous multilevel fit to the experimental capture cross section and the experimental total cross section was attempted. It was possible to reproduce the data by using resonance parameters which are statistically improbable.

• Research Organization: Rensselaer Polytechnic Inst., Troy, NY (USA)
• OSTI ID: 5160185
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

652025* -- Nuclear Properties & Reactions
A=220 & above
Experimental-- Nuclear Reactions & Scattering-- (-1987)
73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS
BARYON REACTIONS
CAPTURE
CROSS SECTIONS
DATA
ENERGY RANGE
EV RANGE
EXPERIMENTAL DATA
HADRON REACTIONS
INFORMATION
NEUTRON REACTIONS
NUCLEAR REACTIONS
NUCLEON REACTIONS
NUMERICAL DATA
TARGETS
THORIUM 232 TARGET
TOTAL CROSS SECTIONS