Measurement of Short-Lived Fission Product Yields for $^{237}$Np via $\gamma$-ray Spectroscopy
ORAL
Abstract
Accurate fission product yields (FPYs) for neutron-induced fission of $^{237}$Np are important for applied nuclear science. The yields of short-lived fission products $(t_{1/2}$ $\lesssim$ hours$)$ are of particular interest, and are experimentally challenging to measure. High-resolution $\gamma$-ray spectroscopy can be used to determine the amount of various fission fragments produced by the unique $\gamma$-ray signatures of their decay, and does not require time-consuming chemical separation processes. Samples of $^{237}$Np have been irradiated in the Godiva-IV critical assembly, and then measured in a $\gamma$-ray counting setup for approximately 7 days. Hundreds of unique $\gamma$-rays were observed, allowing for the measurement of FPYs for many short-lived isotopes.
*This work was funded by the Office of Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation Research and Development within the U.S. DOE - NNSA. This work was performed under the auspices of the U.S. DOE by LLNL under Contract DE-AC52-07NA27344. The National Criticality Experiments Research Center (NCERC), utilized in this work, is supported by the U.S. DOE Nuclear Criticality Safety Program, funded and managed by the NNSA for the DOE.
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