Neutron Capture Cross Sections

These experiments have used the OSU nuclear reactor to produce radioactive species by neutron capture.  From the activity (decay rate) of the resulting radioisotopes, it is possible to deduce the cross section (probability) for neutron capture.  These results have both theoretical and practical importance.  From the theoretical standpoint, the cross section is a fundamental property of the nucleus whose values can be calculated and compared with experiment as a test of the applicability of different models of nuclear structure.  The practical importance of precise knowledge of the cross sections includes the production of radioisotopes for medical uses and the calculation of shielding and activation of materials exposed to neutrons.

The photos below show our detector laboratory and the reactor core.  The blue glow comes from Cerenkov radiation emitted by charged particles (electrons) whose speeds exceed the speed of light in the water that serves as shielding in the reeactor.




Here are some recent publications from this research:
"Neutron Capture Cross Section of ⁴⁴Ti," R. Ejnisman, I. D. Goldman, K. S. Krane, P. Mohr, Y. Nakazawa, E. B. Norman, T. Rauscher, and J. Reel, Phys. Rev. C 58, 2531 (1998).

“Measurement of Neutron Cross Sections for Medical Isotopes,” S. E. Binney, K. S. Krane, M. A. Garland, G. A. Pertmer, and S. Mirzadeh,” Trans. American Nuclear Society 86, 167 (2002).

“Neutron Capture Cross Section of ¹⁰²Pd,” C. L. Duncan and K. S. Krane, Phys. Rev.C 71, 054322 (2005).
“Neutron Capture Cross Sections of ^{112,116,122,124}Sn,” K. S. Krane and J. Sylvester, Phys. Rev. C 73, 054312 (2006).
“Neutron Capture Cross Sections of ¹⁴⁸Gd and the Decay of ¹⁴⁹Gd,” M. G. Rios, R. Casperson, K. S. Krane, and E. B. Norman, Phys. Rev. C 74, 044302 (2006).

Most of this research has been carried out by undergraduate physics majors for their senior thesis projects.  Here is a list of undergraduate and graduate theses that have resulted from this work:
“Thermal Neutron Capture Cross Sections of ⁶⁸Ge and ¹⁴⁸Gd,” Maribel Gomez Rios, (M.S., 1999).

“The Neutron Capture Cross Section of ²⁰⁸Pb,” Miriam Lambert, (Honors B.S., 2000)

“Measurement of the Thermal Neutron Absorption Cross Section of ¹⁶⁰Tb,” Jeremy Wolf (B.S., 2001)

“Measurements of Neutron Activation in Palladium Isotope 102,” Christopher Duncan (B.S., 2001)

“Measurement of the Thermal Neutron Absorption Cross-section of ¹⁹⁴Hg and ¹⁹⁴Au,” Skye Dorsett (B.S., 2001)

“Neutron Activation Analysis of ^195mPt and ^117mSn,” Rachel Bartlett (B.S., 2002)

“Measuring the Neutron Capture Cross Section of ¹⁴⁸Gd,” Robert J. Casperson (B.S., 2004)

“Using Angular Correlation to Determine Decay Behavior in Nuclei Through the Analysis of Coincidence Sum Peaks,” Werner W. Hager IV (Honors B.S., 2004)

“Measurements of Sn Neutron Activation Cross Sections Through Neutron Activation Analysis,” Jeremy Sylvester (B.S., 2005)

“Neutron Capture Cross Sections and Resonance Integrals of Tellurium Isotopes,” Micah C. Eastman (B.S., 2006)