Measurement of the Response Function of a BC501A Neutron Detector

A 5'' X 2'' BC501A neutron detector was used to measure proton recoil spectra at a number of mono-energetic incident neutron energies between 2 and 6 MeV at the Triangle Universities Nuclear Laboratory. The goal of the experiment was to characterize the response function for a variety of known neutron energies so that an unknown neutron spectrum can be obtained by unfolding the detector response to the incident spectrum. We discuss calibration, optimization of the neutron-gamma discrimination, and the progress of the analysis.