Neutron-Resonance Transmission Analysis with a Compact Deuterium-Tritium Neutron Generator
Name
PhysRevApplied.15.054026.pdf
Description
Published version
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948.68 KB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (MD5)
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Author(s)
Klein, Ethan A
Naqvi, Farheen
Bickus, Jacob E
Lee, Hin Y
Danagoulian, Areg
Goldston, Robert J
Date Issued
2021
Journal
Physical Review Applied
Publisher
American Physical Society (APS)
Version
Final published version
Abstract
Neutron Resonance Transmission Analysis (NRTA) is a spectroscopic technique
which uses the resonant absorption of neutrons in the epithermal range to infer
the isotopic composition of an object. This spectroscopic technique has
relevance in many traditional fields of science and nuclear security. NRTA in
the past made use of large, expensive accelerator facilities to achieve precise
neutron beams, significantly limiting its applicability. In this work we
describe a series of NRTA experiments where we use a compact, low-cost
deuterium-tritium (DT) neutron generator to produce short neutron beams (2.6~m)
along with a $^6$Li-glass neutron detector. The time-of-flight spectral data
from five elements -- silver, cadmium, tungsten, indium, and $^{238}$U --
clearly show the corresponding absorption lines in the 1-30 eV range. The
experiments show the applicability of NRTA in this simplified configuration,
and prove the feasibility of this compact and low-cost approach. This could
significantly broaden the applicability of NRTA, and make it practical and
applicable in many fields, such as material science, nuclear engineering, and
arms control.
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Nuclear Science and Engineering
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DOI of Published Version
https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevapplied.15.054026
