Fission of 232Th, 238U and 235U induced by negative muons

The absolute yields of prompt and delayed fission induced by negative muons in ²³²Th, ²³⁸U and ²³⁵U have been measured. The delayed fission yields are much lower than could be predicted from Γ_n/Γ_f systematics for 15–20 MeV nuclear excitation. The systematics of prompt fission yields are compared with recently obtained photofission data. It is suggested that prompt fission can be used for investigating the channel structure of the fission barrier.     

Search for E2 strength in electrofission of 238U and 232Th

We have measured the cross-section ratio σ^?/σ⁺ for the electron and positron induced fission of uranium and thorium in the energy range 10–40 MeV with detectors at 90° and in a 2π geometry. The observed periodic structure is discussed with respect to E2 admixtures and an anisotropy of the angular distribution, after the onset of each higher chance fission threshold, as well as with respect to the shape of the photofission cross section.     

The muon capture rate in 232Th and 238U studied in the fission mode

We find that for 0.4 GeV protons nucleon-nucleon data have enough accuracy for detailed analyses of proton-helium elastic scattering. Continued sensitivity to nucleon-nucleon inputs and an unexpected discrepancy below the first minimum suggest a need for caution in extracting nuclear information.     

Study of the giant dipole resonance of 232Th and 238U using elastic and raman photon scattering

Differential cross sections for elastic and Raman scattering of photons from ²³²Th and ²³⁸U targets were measured. Eight photon energies in the range 7.9–11.4 MeV were used and were obtained from thermal neutron capture in Fe, Cr, Cu and Ni. The angular distribution of the elastic and Raman scattered radiation from ²³²Th was measured. The results are compared with calculations of the simple rotator model and the dynamical collective model of the giant dipole resonance after incorporating the effect of Delbruck scattering.     

北航沙河校区土壤中40 K、238 U、232 Th相对含量的实验测量

环境中天然伽马射线主要来源于40K以及钍系、铀系和锕系.通过探测伽马射线来识别放射性核素并得到它们的相对含量,是核科学与核技术中的一个重要方法.利用高分辨的高纯锗探测器,北航以及国内部分高校已开设了鉴别环境中放射性核素的实验.在此基础上,本文进一步利用特征γ射线与递次衰变规律,对北航沙河校区土壤中的40 K、238 U...     

Elastic and inelastic4He-scattering on208Pb,232Th and234, 236, 238U

The angular distributions of the elastic⁴He-scattering on²⁰⁸Pb and the elastic and inelastic⁴He-scattering on²³²Th and^234,236,238U at E_4He = 50 MeVE_{4_{He} } = 50 MeV were measured between 20° and 60°. The⁴He-particles were detected with a position sensitive detector in the focal plane of a split-pole spectrograph. The aim was to get data to determine the deformation parameters of the equilibrium states by coupled channels calculations.     

The mass and kinetic energy distributions in the fission of 237Np, 232Th, 238U, 235U and 209Bi induced by 110 MeV electrons

Fission of ²³²Th, ²³⁷Np, ²⁰⁹Bi, ²³⁵U and ²³⁸U induced by 110 MeV electrons has been studied by means of surface barrier detectors. The resulting mass and kinetic energy distributions are presented. Comparison with the liquid drop model predictions shows reasonable agreement in the case of ²⁰⁹Bi. The data are analysed in terms of a two component model of fission and the mean total kinetic energies of the components are shown to depend linearly on $\text{Z}{}_1\text{Z}{}_2\text{(A}{}_1{}^{\mathrm{<mtext>1</mtext><mtext>3</mtext>}}\text{+ A}{}_2{}^{\mathrm{<mtext>1</mtext><mtext>3</mtext>}}\text{)}$. Interesting differences are found when the present results are compared with the recent photofission experiments of Areskoug et al. and features in both sets of data correlate with changes of fragment deformation implied by the calculations of Wilkins et al.     

High-spin states in 232U investigated with the 232Th(α, 4nγ) reaction

The ground-state rotational band of ²³²U is established up to I^π = 16⁺ (tentatively 18⁺) through a study of the ²³²Th(α, 4nγ) reaction. Conversion electron spectroscopy is found to be especially useful in circumventing the difficulties caused by strong fission competition.     

Photofission cross sections of 232Th and 236U from threshold to 8 MeV

Measurements of the photofission cross sections of ²³²Th and ²³⁶U for an energy range of 5.0 to 8.0 MeV are reported. The Compton scattering facility at the Ames Laboratory Research Reactor was used for these measurements. Resonance structure at γ-ray energies of 6.3 and 7.6 MeV is observed in ²³²Th and at 5.3, 6.0, 6.5, and 7.5 MeV in ²³⁶U. The present results are compared with other photofission experiments and particle-induced fission studies. Suggestions for the interpretation of the resonances are given on the basis of Bohr's fission-channel theory and the existence of a double-humped fission barrier.     

Photoinduced fission of the doubly even uranium isotopes 234U, 236U and 238U

A measurement of the angular distributions and yields of fission fragments in the photofission of ²³⁴U has been performed between 5.2 and 6.4 MeV. As γ-source, the bremsstrahlung from a microtron was used. For the detection of the fission fragments, solid-state track detectors were used. The present data for ²³⁴U have been analysed together with earlier obtained data for ²³⁶U and ²³⁸U. The values of the fission barrier parameters obtained are compared to results in theoretical macroscopic and microscopic fission potential energy calculations.     

Fission-fragment energy correlation measurements for (nth, f) of 232U and 233U

Fission-fragment mass and kinetic energy distributions and their correlations have been measured for ²³²U and ²³³U. The results on these uranium isotopes and ²³⁵U are compared. The mass peak/valley ratio of 785 ± 68 for ²³²U is the highest of the three isotopes. The 〈E_K〉(μ_H) distributions show significant differences. The dip ΔE_K at symmetry is $\text{16.2 ± 1.0}\text{MeV}\text{(}{}^{232}\text{U}\text{)}$, $\text{17.0 ± 1.0}\text{MeV}\text{(}{}^{233}\text{U}\text{)}\text{and}\text{20.6 ± 1.1}\text{MeV}\text{(}{}^{235}\text{U}\text{)}$. In the yields for high-kinetic-energy-selected events, the mass 134 dominates for ²³³U and ²³⁵U, but for ²³²U it is μ_H≈144, which dominates. This complete reversal of profiles can be understood in terms of fragment shells.     

Analysis of 226Ra, 232Th and 40K in soil samples for the assessment of the average effective dose

The activity concentrations of the natural radionuclides namely ²³⁸Ra, ²³²Th and ⁴⁰K are measured for soil samples collected from different locations of Faridkot and Mansa districts of Punjab. HPGe detector, based on high-resolution gamma spectrometry system is used for the measurement of activity concentration. The range of activity concentrations of ²²⁶Ra, ²³²Th and ⁴⁰K in the soil from the studied areas varies from 21.42 Bq kg⁻¹ to 40.23 Bq kg⁻¹, 61.01 Bq kg⁻¹ to 142.34 Bq kg⁻¹ and 227.11 Bq kg⁻¹ to 357.13 Bq kg⁻¹ with overall mean values of 27.17 Bq kg⁻¹, 95.22 Bq kg⁻¹ and 312.76 Bq kg⁻¹, respectively. Radium equivalent activities are calculated for the analyzed samples to assess the radiation hazards arising due to the use of these soil samples in the construction of dwellings. The absorbed dose rate calculated from activity concentration of ²²⁶Ra, ²³²Th and ⁴⁰K ranges between 9.87 and 18.55, 38.01 and 88.68 and 9.40 and 14.79 nGy h⁻¹, respectively. The total absorbed dose in the study area ranges from 61.10 nGy h⁻¹ to 112.86 nGy h⁻¹ with an average value of 84.80 nGy h⁻¹. The calculated values of external hazard index (H _ex) for the soil samples of the study area range from 0.36 to 0.68. Since these values are lower than unity, according to the Radiation Protection 112 (European Commission, 1999) report, soil from these regions is safe and can be used as construction material without posing any significant radiological threat to population. The corresponding average annual effective dose for indoor and outdoor measured in the study area are 0.42 mSv and 0.10 mSv respectively.      

Measurement of the total cross section for 235U and 238U photofission in the δ-resonance region

The total cross section for the photoemission of fission fragments σ(γ, F) has been measured for ²³⁵U and ²³⁸U using tagged bremsstrahlung photons in the energy range 120–460 MeV. The fission fragments were detected in parallel plate avalanche detectors. The results are compared with other information on the photonuclear absorption cross section.     

Study of some characteristics of the thermal-neutron-induced sub-barrier fission of 231Pa, 232Th and 237Np

Some characteristics of the thermal-neutron-induced fission of ²³¹Pa, ²³²Th and ²³⁷Np were studied using a highly pure thermal-neutron beam of the Grenoble High Flux Reactor. For the thermal-neutron-induced-fission cross section we obtained 20 ± 4 mb for ²³⁷Np, 19 ± 4 mb for ²³¹Pa and less than 2.5 μb for ²³²Th, in agreement with calculations based on a double humped fission barrier. We also determined a mean total fission fragment kinetic energy of 172.8 + 2.5 MeV for ²³⁷Np, which fits into the semi-empirical systematic of $\text{E}\text{?}{}_{\mathrm{<mtext>K</mtext>}}$ versus $\text{Z}{}^2\text{/A}{}^{\mathrm{<mtext>case1</mtext><mtext>3</mtext>}}$. Finally, we determined LRA/B ratios of (1.94±0.17) × 10^?3 for ²³⁷Np and (1.67±0.11) × 10^?3for ²³¹Pa, in disagreement with the theoretical predictions of Feather, but consistent with the semi-empirical systematic of Halpern.     

Emission of high-energy alpha particles in nuclear reactions of 48Ca and 56Fe ions on 181Ta and 238U targets

The results of experiments on measuring the energy spectra of alpha particles in reactions with heavy ions are presented. The measurements were performed using the high-resolution magnetic analyzer MAVR with beams of ⁴⁸Ca (280 MeV) and ⁵⁶Fe (320 and 400 MeV) on ¹⁸¹Ta and ²³⁸U targets at an angle of 0°. A strong dependence of the double differential cross sections for production of alpha particles on the atomic number of the target nucleus was observed, which indicates that fast alpha particles are mainly emitted from the target nucleus; this conclusion was also confirmed by calculations within the time-dependent Schr?dinger equation approach. An analysis of the obtained experimental data was carried out within the model of moving sources modified to consider the kinematic limits for two-body and three-body exit channels.     

238U（9Be,5n）242Cm熔合蒸发反应激发函数测量（英文）

第一次测量到238U（9Be,5n）242Cm熔合蒸发反应的激发函数。通过使用叠层靶,在不改变束流能量的条件下,在线获得20个能量点下的实验数据。利用蒸发余核242Cm的半衰期较长,且衰变模式是α衰变的特点,用离线测量α放射性的方法得到目标核产额。实验最大截面约1 mb,激发函数曲线的形态和峰值所在的能量位置与现有的理论模型的计算结果一致。激发函数的实验数据对选择和优化理论模型,推动超铀核区核物理研究具有重要的意义。The excitation function of the 238U(9Be, 5n) reaction was obtained for the first time. By using a stack of uranium targets, 20 experimental data were obtained by the on-line irradiation without changing beam energy. Taking the advantage of the long lifetime and α decay mode of the residue nucleus 242Cm, the off-line measurement of the α radioactive was performed to obtain its yields. The maximum cross section is about 1 mb. The curve's shape and the maximum's position agree with the present model. The value of the cross section will help us to develop the ralated models, and push the nuclear studies in the transuranium region.     

Thoron (220Rn) in the indoor environment and work places

Ever since studies on uranium miners established the presence of a positive risk coefficient for the occurrence of lung cancer in miners exposed to elevated levels of ²²²Rn and its progeny, there was a great upsurge of interest in the measurement of ²²²Rn in the environment. Subsequently, considerable data is being generated on the levels of ²²²Rn in the environment across the worlds and is being periodically reported by UNSCEAR reports. In contrast to this, data pertaining to ²²⁰Rn in indoors and workplace environment is scaree due to the genral perception that its levels are negligible due to its shorter half life, and subsequently its contribution to the total inhalation dose is ignored, in the presence of other significant sources of natural radiation. This may not be true. Globally many locations have higher levels of natural background radiation due to elevated levels of primordial radio nuclides in the soil and their decay products like radon (²²²Rn), and thoron (²²⁰Rn) in the environment. Of late, technologically enhanced naturally occurring radioactive material has also contributed to the burden of background radiation. It is estimated that inhalation of ²²²Rn, ²²⁰Rn and their short lived progenies contribute more than 54% of the total natural background radiation dose received by the general population. ²²⁰Rn problem exists in industries which use thorium nitrate. Including India, lamps using thoriated gas mantles are still being used for indoor and outdoor lighting and by hawkers in rural as well as urban areas. Considering the fact that large amount of thorium nitrate is being handled by these industries, contribution to the inhalation dose of workers from ²²⁰Rn gas emanated and build up of the progeny in ambient air may also be quite significant. In this paper current status of ²²⁰Rn levels in the indoor environment and workplaces as well as in other industries where large amount of ²³²Th is being handled is being summarized. Methods of measurement and reported levels are also summarized.     

Electron induced fission of the 238U, 237Np, 239Pu and 243Am nuclei in the energy region 100–1000 MeV

Electrofission cross sections for ²³⁸U, ²³⁷Np, ²³⁹Pu and ²⁴³Am have been measured over the energy range 100–1000 MeV. Relative flssilities are evaluated. Analysis in terms of the virtual photon spectra technique involving a nuclear size effect is made. Contributions of various electronuclear excitation mechanisms in the large-energy region are discussed.     

Linear momentum transfer in the reaction 232Th(14N,light particles) AT 208 MeV

The longitudinal momentum transferred to a target nucleus (ΔP) has been studied for light-particle emission in the ¹⁴N-induced reaction on ²³²Th at 208 MeV. The transferred momentum was deduced by measuring folding angles between two fission fragments resulting from the sequential decay of the target-like nucleus. It was found that the fraction $\text{?}{}_2\text{=}\text{(〈ΔP〉 + P}{}_{\mathrm{<mtext>out</mtext>}}{}^{\mathrm{\parallel }}\text{)}\text{P}{}_{\mathrm{<mtext>beam</mtext>}}$ averaged over light-particle energy was about 0.68, almost independent of light-particle species and detection angle, where P_beam is the initial momentum of the beam particle and P_out^∥, the momentum component parallel to the beam carried away by the observed light particle. A possible mechanism for describing the phenomena is discussed.     

Correlation between fragment mass-distribution fine structure,charge distribution and nuclear structure for thermal-neutron-induced fission of 233U and 235U

Masses corresponding to observed fine-structure peaks in the fragment mass distributions for thermal-neutron-induced fission of ²³³U and ²³⁵U are shown to correspond to average measured masses for even-even nuclear charge splits. Evidence is presented that the yield enhancement for even-Z fragments is not restricted just to fission events with higher-than-average total kinetic energy. The anomalously high yield of fragments with mass 134 in ²³⁵U(n, f) as opposed to ²³³(n, f) is tentatively correlated with rapidly changing nuclear structure properties as a function of the mass of the complementary light (Z = 40) fragments.