On the Use of Depleted Uranium Dioxide as a Neutron Filter

A simple additive formula is given which, for neutron energies in the range 10^-4 < E<10 eV, permits calculation of the nuclear capture, thermal diffuse and Bragg scattering cross-sections of a crystalline material as a function of its crystal constants and temperature. Computer codes PUO and SUO were developed to calculate the total attenuation of reactor neutrons through poly- and mono-crystalline samples, respectively. The codes were applied to calculate the total cross-section of polycrystalline uranium and thorium dioxides in the energy range from 4 meV to 1 eV. The obtained agreement between the calculated values and available experimental values justifies the applicability of the used formula and the computer codes. A feasibility study on using depleted polycrystalline uranium dioxide as a cold neutron filter and the single crystal as a thermal neutron filter is given. The optimum crystal parameters and thickness for efficiently transmitting the thermal reactor neutrons while strongly attenuating both fast neutrons and -rays accompanying the thermal ones is also given.     

Neutron optics of strongly absorbing media and interaction of long-wave neutrons with gadolinium films

The modern state of neutron optics of absorbing media is briefly surveyed. In all probability, there are no physics arguments that would constrain, in the case of strong absorption, the applicability of the commonly accepted Fermi-Foldy dispersion law for neutron waves. In accord with previously known results, it is found that the coefficient of reflection of neutrons from the boundary of a strongly absorbing medium tends to unity with decreasing velocity of neutrons incident on this medium. At low neutron energies peculiar to the case of ultracold neutrons, the complex scattering length for neutron-nucleus interaction proves to be constant, whence it follows that the cross section for neutron capture by a free nucleus obeys the 1/v law. The cross section for the analogous process on nuclei within a medium is described by the 1/v′ law, where v′=?k′/m, with k′ being the real part of the neutron wave number in the medium. As the incident-neutron velocity v decreases, the velocity v′ in a medium tends to some limiting value. From the coefficient of reflection of cold neutrons that is measured as a function of the wavelength and the angle of incidence, a refined value is found for the real part of the scattering length for neutron interaction with gadolinium nuclei. An experiment was performed where ultracold neutrons were transmitted through thin samples containing natural gadolinium. In analyzing the results of this experiment, use was made of the value found here for the real part of the neutron-nucleus scattering length. The experiment indicates that the imaginary part of the scattering length is a constant or, what is the same, that, for neutron velocities ranging from 4 to about 120 m/s, the 1/v law for the cross section for neutron capture by a free nucleus is valid to within 6%.     

Magnetic relaxation spectra of EuNi2P2

We report on inelastic neutron scattering experiments on EuNi₂P₂ prepared from¹⁵³Eu-isotopes. The sample was checked by Mössbauer spectroscopy; a satellite phase of about 4% was found. The neutron scattering experiment was performed with thermal neutrons. AboveT=50 K a strong quasielastic magnetic line was detected with a nearly temperature independent width of about 6 meV. At low temperatures the spectrum changes to an inelastic character with a distinctQ-dependence in the intensity. For comparison static susceptibility and magnetization measurements were performed down to 250 mK.     

Determination of Moisture Content in Coke with <Superscript>239</Superscript>Pu–Be Neutron Source and BGO Scintillation Gamma Detector

A series of experiments has been conducted at the Frank Laboratory of Neutron Physics (FLNP) of the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research (JINR) in order to study the possibility of determining the moisture content of coke using a standard neutron source. The proposed method is based on a measurement of the spectrum of prompt γ rays emitted when samples are irradiated by fast and/or thermal neutrons. The moisture content is determined from the area of the peaks of characteristic γ rays produced in the radiative capture of thermal neutrons by the proton (E_γ = 2.223 MeV) and inelastic scattering of fast neutrons by ¹⁶O (E_γ = 6.109 MeV). The ²³⁹Pu–Be neutron source (〈E _n 〉 ~ 4.5 MeV) with an intensity of ~5 × 10⁶ n/s was used to irradiate the samples under study. A scintillation detector based on a BGO crystal was used to register the characteristic γ radiation from the inelastic fast neutron scattering and slow (thermal) neutron capture. This paper presents the results of humidity measurement in the range of 2–50% [1, 2].     

Theory of diffuse neutron scattering in the high temperature phase of CsCuCl3 and related Jahn-Teller compounds

The hexagonal Jahn-Teller compounds ABCl₃ (A=Cs, Rb; B=Cu, Cr) in their common high temperature phase are modeled as a system of independent elastic dipoles dressed by a far reaching strain field. The diffuse elastic cross section for neutrons is derived as for Huang scattering. Isointensity contours and line widths (FWHM) are calculated for CsCuCl₃ and compared to experimental results, especially looking for correlations and precursor effects of the structural phase transition.     

Prompt fission neutron spectra of <Superscript>238 </Superscript>U(n,f) above emissive fission threshold

Model calculations were performed to interpret prompt fission neutron spectra (PFNS) of the ²³⁸ U(n, f) reaction for incident neutron energies -18 MeV. Pre-fission (pre-saddle) reaction neutron spectra were calculated with Hauser-Feshbach statistical model, ²³⁸ U fission and reaction cross-section data being described consistently. The increase of the cut-off energy of (n, nf) reaction neutron spectra with excitation energy of fissioning nucleus is described. For -9 MeV the low-energy PFNS component, which is due to the contribution of pre-fission (n, nf) neutrons, is compatible with measured data. Average energy of prefission (n, nf) neutrons is shown to be rather dependent on . For -18 MeV, a decrease of measured PFNS average neutron energies is interpreted. Spectra of neutrons, evaporated from fission fragments, were approximated as a sum of two Watt distributions. The reduced fission fragment velocity is assumed for the neutron emission during fragment acceleration. Several interpretations of observed soft neutron excess are investigated, i.e., possible uncertainties of emissive fission contributions and additional neutron source. We claim the soft neutron excess cannot be attributed to the pre-saddle neutrons contribution.Received: 3 February 2003, Revised: 24 April 2003, Published online: 9 October 2003PACS: 25.85.Ec Neutron-induced fission     

Correlated Huang scattering in hexagonal Jahn Teller compounds

This is a theoretical investigation on structural precursors in diffuse neutron scattering of disordered phases of cooperative Jahn-Teller compounds above their structural phase transitions. The theory is based on Huang scattering off elastic dipoles. Softening of shear modes in the smallq regime known from inelastic scattering predicts monoclinic and orthorhombic structures which are found in some of these compounds. For these smallq the Jahn-Teller effect looks dynamic and Huang scattering is not applicable. With larger wave vectors the dipoles look static and Huang theory works but one picks up neighbor correlations which have to be included. We believe to have identified the spiral correlation announcing the helical structure of CsCuCl₃ in its ordered phase. We also calculate diffuse scattering for RbCrCl₃ and the experimentally observed satellites announcing the cell doubling of the ordered phase.     

In-situ SEOP polarizer and initial tests on a high flux neutron beam

Polarized ³He has shown its unique characteristics in many areas of polarized neutron scattering, its ability to polarize neutrons at short wavelengths, accept wide-angle and divergent beams and low backgrounds enable new classes of experiments. While polarized ³He is not a steady state solution as commonly applied, the benefits have been shown to offset the drawbacks of polarizing and refreshing the polarization in the neutron spin filter cells. As an extension of this work, in-situ polarization using the spin-exchange optical pumping (SEOP) method was explored as a means to construct a system which could be used to polarize ³He in the state used for an effective neutron spin filter to constant polarization while on the neutron beam. An in-situ SEOP polarizer was constructed. This device utilized many devices and principles developed for neutron spin filters which are polarized off the beam line using either SEOP or metastability exchange optical pumping (MEOP) under the same research program. As a collimation of this work effects of extremely high neutron capture flux density incident on the in-situ polarizer were explored.     

Neutron single-particle characteristics of Ag isotopes in the dispersive optical model

The neutron dispersive optical potential for Ag isotopes is constructed for a wide range of variation in the N number. Good agreement with the experimental data on the scattering of neutrons by ¹⁰⁷Аg isotopes, and on single-particle energies and the probabilities of subshell occupation near the Fermi energy, is obtained for stable isotopes ^{107, 109}Ag using the dispersive optical model. Calculations that predict the evolution of the neutron single-particle energies up to the boundary of neutron stability are performed. It is shown that new magic number N = 56 (for Z = 40) disappears upon moving from Zr to Sn in an isotonic chain with N = 56, due to rapid deepening of level 1g _7/2.     

Optical properties of $$\hbox {TlGa}(\hbox {S}_{{x}}\hbox {Se}_{1-x})_{2}$$ layered mixed crystals $$(0 \le x \le 1)$$(0≤x≤1): Absorption edge and photoluminescence study at $$T = 10\hbox { K}$$T=10K

Industrial demand for neutrons constrains careful energy measurements. Elastic scattering of monoenergetic \(\alpha \)-particles from neutron collision enables neutron energy measurement by calculating the amount of deviation from the position where collision takes place. The neutron numbers with specific energy is obtained by counting the number of \(\alpha \)-particles in the corresponding location on the charged particle detector. Monte Carlo simulation and COMSOL Multiphysics5.2 are used to account for one-to-one collision of neutrons with \(\alpha \)-particles.     

Spin fluctuations in both the ordered and paramagnetic phases of MnSi! MnSi a heavy Fermi liquid?

Polarised neutrons and polarisation analysis have been used to determine the diffuse magnetic scattering from MnSi as a function of temperature. Measurements at 50 K (1.72T _c) and 100 K (3.45T _c) in the paramagnetic phase confirmed the presence of strong spatial correlations previously reported at 300 K (10T _c) and 580 K (20T _c). The spatial correlations between regions of spin density separated by 12 Å are of a ferromagnetic nature and determine the static susceptibility. Integration of the paramagnetic response over an inverse atomic volume yields a moment per manganese atom of 1.2 _B , a value considerably larger than the 0.4 _B observed in Bragg scattering and magnetisation measurements at 4.2 K. Measurements made at 11 K in the ordered magnetic phase reveal strong diffuse scattering corresponding to 0.8 _B per Mn atom. The increase in the diffuse scattering observed in the paramagnetic phase corresponds to the passage of the Bragg component into the background.The presence of significant scattering in the ordered phase and the very unusual wave vector dependence of the diffuse scattering observed at 11 K has been interpreted assuming MnSi to be a heavy Fermi liquid. Furthermore we believe these measurements give the first direct observation of the exchange hole.     

Crystal-field splitting and temperature dependence of two-dimensional antiferromagnetism in the high-Tc compound DyBa2Cu4O8

By means of a quantitative analysis of extensive elastic neutron scattering experiments performed on theT _c =78 K superconductor DyBa₂Cu₄O₈ it is shown that two-dimensional (2D) antiferromagnetic Dy ordering in the (a,b)-plane remains stable in the whole temperature range fromT _N =(1.10±0.02) K down to 7 mK. The magnetic difference pattern with good angular resolution fits well to the Warren equation for scattering on 2D systems with powder averaging. Consequently, the fitted sublattice magnetisation is found to have a 2D Ising character. Moreover, the Dy³⁺ crystal-field levels were determined by inelastic neutron scattering. From the resulting crystal-field parameters we calculate the sublattice magnetisation of Dy³⁺ at saturation to be _Dy,CEF=6.0 _B in good agreement with _Dy,obs=(5.9±0.5) _B as measured by neutron diffraction.     

Collective excitations in solid hydrogen as observed by incoherent neutron scattering

Incoherent neutron scattering experiments are reported at a number of scattering angles for solid H₂ using the time-of-flight technique. The samples had an ortho concentration ofX0.91 and the temperatures were 4.2, 2.2 and 1.2 K. The recorded scattering functions exhibit the elastic line, the ortho-para conversion line, the phonon spectrum on the energy-gain side of the neutrons and finally the phonon spectrum on the energy-loss side. Analysis of the data shows multiple scattering to be very important especially at small scattering angles. Accordingly, the results of an extensive calculation are reported that include up to four-fold scattering. The phonon spectrum that brings calculation and experiment in agreement at all angles is presented. It is concluded from the comparison between the spectra at various temperatures that unexpectedly the samples have always remained in the hexagonal close-packed phase even below the usual transition temperature into the cubic phase. Comparison is made with the spectrum (also in thehcp phase) obtained from coherent neutron scattering. The high-energy phonon tail, to be expected for quantum crystals, is observed and is qualitatively consistent with that in a similar spectral density derived theoretically from ortho-para conversion data under pressure. No evidence of a libron spectrum atT=2.2 K for a sample withX=0.91 could be found, which is consistent with the absence of the cubic orientationally ordered phase in these experiments.Supported in this research by a grant from the National Science Foundation     

Moments of polarized parton distribution functions

We present novel results for the first moment of the spin-dependent structure function g ₁(x,Q ²) of the nucleon at small (Q ² < 0.3 GeV²) photon virtuality in the framework of a relativistic formulation of baryon chiral perturbation theory. We perform a next-to-leading order calculation and obtain significant differences to previously found results based on the heavy-baryon approach for the proton and neutron.Received: 30 September 2002, Published online: 22 October 2003PACS: 12.39.Fe Chiral Lagrangians - 14.20.Dh Protons and neutrons     

Neutron polarization analysis on the multiferroic TbMn2O5

Polycrystalline TbMn₂O₅ was prepared by the standard solid-state reaction method and characterized by powder X-ray diffraction and magnetization to assure it is of single phase. Heat capacity measurements on the compound reveal an antiferromagnetic phase transition at 45 K. A broad peak below 6 K in the heat capacity measurements corresponds to the crossover transition of Tb³⁺ ordering. To confirm these magnetic orderings, neutron powder diffractions on TbMn₂O₅ with XYZ neutron polarization analysis were performed at the diffuse neutron scattering (DNS) spectrometer, FRJ-II, by using neutron wavelength of 4.8 Å in the temperature range of 1.8–250 K. Magnetic scattering was separated from nuclear coherent and spin incoherent scattering contributions. Long-range ordered magnetic peaks were observed below 39 K which is consistent with the heat capacity results. The drastic increasing intensities below 6 K indicate the ferromagnetic transition in Tb³⁺ orderings.     

Edge localized modes of cold neutrons in periodic condensed media

It is found that for certain energies of discreet cold neutrons, quasi-stationary eigen solutions of the corresponding Schrodinger equation, which are localized in the layer of a periodic medium, exist. The localization time of these solutions is strongly dependent on the layer thickness, being finite for a finite layer thickness and increasing indefinitely upon a infinite growth of the layer thickness as the third power of the layer thickness. The problem has been solved in the two-wave approximation of the dynamic diffraction theory for the neutron propagation direction coinciding with the periodicity axes (normal incidence of the neutron beam on the layer). The expressions for neutron eigenwave functions in a periodic medium, the reflection and transmission coefficients, and the neutron wavefunction in the layer as a function of the neutron energy incident on the layer have been determined. It turns out that for the certain discrete neutron energies, the amplitudes of the neutron wavefunction in the layer reach sharp maxima. The corresponding energies are just outside of the neutron stop band (energies forbidden for neutron propagation in the layer) and determine the energies of neutron edge modes (NEMs) localized in the layer, which are direct analogs of the optical edge modes for photonic crystals. The dispersion equation for the localized neutron edge modes has been obtained and analytically solved for the case of thick layers. A rough estimate for the localization length L is L ~(db N)^–1, where b is the neutron scattering length, d is the crystal period, and N is the density of nuclei in the crystal. The estimates of the localized thermal neutron lifetime show that acheaving of a lifetime close to the free neutron lifetime seems nonrealistic due to absorption of thermal neutrons and requires a perfect large size crystal. Nevertheless, acheaving the localized neutron lifetime exceeding by ~10⁴ times the neutron time of flight through the layer appears as experimentally attainable. The perspectives of the NEM observation are briefly discussed. It is proposed to use NEM for ultrahigh thermal neutron monochromatization by means of NEM excitation in perfect single crystals.     

A precise measurement of the spin-dependent neutron scattering length of 3He

The poor knowledge of the spin-dependent neutron scattering length of ³He has until now handicapped nuclear four body theory and the interpretation of excitations in the quantum liquid. We have measured, for the first time directly, the real part of the bound incoherent neutron scattering length, b_i′ of ³He. A neutron spin echo spectrometer was used to detect pseudomagnetic precession of polarised neutrons passing through polarised ³He gas. Any absolute calibrations of sample and beam parameters were avoided using simple transmission measurements with non-polarised neutrons. The only a priory information required was the spin-dependent neutron absorption cross section of ³He. The result is b_i′ = -2.365(20) fm, which reduces the prior uncertainty by a factor 30. The corresponding new value of the bound incoherent scattering cross section is σ_i = 1.532(12) barn. Including the known value of the coherent neutron scattering length, we obtain new values for the real parts of the free triplet and singlet neutron scattering lengths, a_-′ = 7.370(58) fm and a₊′ = 3.278(53) fm.     

Single transverse-spin asymmetry in very forward and very backward neutral particle production for polarized proton collisions at

In the 2001–2002 running period of the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC), transversely polarized protons were accelerated to 100 GeV for the first time, with collisions at . We present results from this run for single transverse-spin asymmetries for inclusive production of neutral pions, photons and neutrons of the energy region 20–100 GeV for forward and backward production for angles between 0.3 mrad and 2.2 mrad with respect to the polarized proton direction. An asymmetry of was observed for forward neutron production, where the errors are statistical and systematic, and the scale error is from the beam polarization uncertainty. The forward photon and π⁰, and backward neutron, photon, and π⁰ asymmetries were consistent with zero. The large neutron asymmetry indicates a strong interference between a spin–flip amplitude, such as one pion exchange which dominates lower energy neutron production, and remaining spin–non-flip amplitudes such as reggeon exchange.     

Neutron yield upon the irradiation of thin TiD<Subscript>2</Subscript> foils with a superintense laser pulse

The yield of neutrons from the thermonuclear-fusion reaction D(d, n)³He induced in a thin skin layer by the interaction of a high-intensity laser pulse of picosecond duration with thin TiD₂ foils is calculated. A multiple ionization of titanium atoms at the leading edge of the laser pulse is considered. The heating of free electrons proceeds via induced inverse bremsstrahlung in elastic electron scattering on multiply charged titanium ions. The electron temperature is calculated. It proves to be about 10 keV at the laser-pulse intensity of 5×10¹⁸ W/cm² at the peak. The neutron yield is estimated at 10⁴ per laser pulse. These results are in qualitative agreement with experimental data.     

Reduction of surface hydrogen on ultra cold neutron container materials by ion bombardement

The hydrogen concentration near to the surface of some typical ultra cold neutron container materials has been measured with theH(¹¹ B, ) 2 reaction. The concentration of 2 – 3 × 10¹⁶ H atoms/cm² is in agreement with results obtained by other methods. Using theoretical neutron scattering cross sections we confirm that at room temperature the experimentally known high UCN reflection loss rate could be caused by the measured concentration of hydrogen. The original hydrogen content has been reduced by ion bombardment to about one tenth of its original value. The redeposition of hydrogen has been studied as a function of the residual pressure. We conclude that it is possible to produce by sputtering container surfaces with hydrogen (and other surface impurity) contents sufficiently low and stable to test directly with UCN whether their losses are mainly due to upscattering on impurities or not.