A General Description of Fission Observables (GEF) version 2016/1.2 is a software which simulates various types of fission. The main objective of this project is to compare the proton induced fission with the neutron induced fission of the same fissioning system. The proton induced fission was recently introduced to GEF and is relatively untested. Furthermore another task is to study the energy dependence in the same compound nucleus. The project will focus on simulating and comparing 238U(p,f) with 238Np(n,f) and 239Np*(f) as well as 232Th(p,f) with 232Pa(n,f) and 233Pa*(f ). The simulations were also compared to experimental data acquired by the division of applied nuclear physics at Uppsala University. The results show that the p-induced channel behaves very similar to the Compound Nucleus (CN) channel in contrary with the (n,f) channel. However when comparing the simulated data to the experimental data, there seems to be clear differences.

Since its discovery, the phenomenon of nuclear fission is the object of extensive theoretical and experimental studies. However, we are still far from a complete understanding of the fission process. Nuclear theory can satisfactorily explain the process of neutron-induced fission at thermal neutron energies, but it meets problems at high neutron energies. However, new applications are nowadays developed involving neutron-induced fission in this energy domain. An example of such an application is accelerator-driven systems (ADS) which are dedicated to transmutation of highly radioactive nuclear waste. Conceptual studies of ADS require new nuclear data on neutron-induced reactions within a wide incident energy range. Along with structural, spallation target and other materials, data on neutron-induced fission are especially required for two nuclides, 232Th and 238U. At present, however, there are no published neutron-induced fission yield data for either 232Th or 238U at energies above 20 MeV. In this thesis, I present measurements of fission fragment mass yields at neutron energies from 10 to 60 MeV for 232Th and 238U. The experiment was done at the Louvain-la-Neuve quasi-monoenergetic neutron beam facility. A multi-section Frisch-gridded ionization chamber was used as the fission fragment detector. The fission fragment mass yields were measured at peak neutron energies of 33, 45, and 60 MeV. In addition, data for the neutron-energy intervals 9-11, 16-18, and 24-26 MeV were also extracted from the low-energy tail. The measurement results show that the symmetric fission component increases with incident neutron energy for both uranium and thorium, but it is more enhanced for thorium. The uranium results were compared to the only existing set of experimental data for neutron energies above 20 MeV. Reasonable agreement was found. However, our data show a lower symmetric fission component. For thorium, the present data are the first above 20 MeV. Model calculations with the TALYS code have also been done. This code is based on the multi-modal random neck-rupture model extended for higher excitation energies. We included a phenomenological model into the code and achieved a good description of our experimental results. / Felaktigt tryckt som Digital Comprehensive Summaries of Uppsala Dissertations from the Faculty of Science and Technology 723

It is difficult to underestimate the importance of neutron cross section standards in the nuclear data field. Accurate and precise standards are prerequisites for measuring neutron cross sections. Two different projects are presented here with the aim of improving on neutron standards. A simulation study was performed for an experiment intended to measure the cross sections of H(n,n), 235U(n,f), and 238U(n,f) relative to each other. It gave the first estimates of the performance of the experimental setup. Its results have aided the development of the experimental setup by setting limits on the target and detector design. A second neutron-standard project resulted in three measurements of 6Li(n,α)t relative to 235U(n,f). Each subsequent measurement improved upon the previous one and changed the experimental setup accordingly. Although, preliminary cross sections were agreeing well with evaluated data files in some energy intervals, the main goal to measure the cross section up to 3 MeV was not reached. Mass yields and energy spectra are important outcomes of many fission experiments, but in low yield regions the uncertainties are still high even for recurrently studied nuclei. In order to understand the fission dynamics, one also needs correlated fission data. One particular important property is the distribution of excitation energy between the two nascent fission fragments. It is closely connected to the prompt emission of neutrons and γ’s and reveals information about how nucleons and energy are transferred within the fissioning nucleus. By measuring both the pre and post neutron-emission fragment masses, the cumbrance of detecting neutrons directly is overcome. This is done using the fission spectrometer VERDI and the 2E-2v method. In this work I describe how both the spectrometer, the analysis method, and the calibration procedures have been further developed. Preliminary experimental data show the great potential of VERDI, but also areas that call for more attention. A previously overlooked consequence of a central assumption was found and a correction method is proposed that can correct previously obtained data as well. The last part of this thesis concerns the efficiencies of the fission product extraction at the IGISOL facility. The methodology of the fission yield measurements at IGISOL are reliant on assumptions that have not been systematically investigated. The presented work is a first step of such an investigation that can also be used as a tool for optimising the setup for measurements of exotic nuclei. A simulation framework connecting three different simulation codes was developed to investigate the produced yield of fission products in a buffer gas. Several different variants of the setup were simulated and the findings were generally accordant with previous estimates. A reasonable agreement between experimental data and the simulation results is demonstrated.

This work investigates the feasibility to perform an experiment at CERN n_TOF to study the fission cross section and fission fragment angular distribution (FFAD) of the 230Th(n,f) reaction. An analysis of fission fragment energy losses in the experimental target resulted in a choice of target thickness of 0.1 µm (100 µg/cm2 ), which yields good transmission out of the target at up to 45° emission angles from the target normal. A detection setup using ten PPAC detectors with nine thorium targets interleaved in between them was investigated, where the detectors and targets were tilted 45° with respect to the neutron beam. This makes it possible to measure all emission angles needed with respect to the neutron beam in order to determine the FFAD. For the experimental area EAR2 at n_TOF, a prediction of the count rate in the experiment resulted in low statistical uncertainties after a few weeks of beam time, which indicates that an experiment like this is feasible. / Detta projekt undersöker genomförbarheten av ett experiment vid CERN n_TOF för att mäta tvärsnittet och fördelningen av emissionsvinklar av fissionsfragment (FFAD) från 230Th(n,f)-reaktionen. En analys av energiförlusterna av fissionsfragment inuti torium-provet resulterade i en optimal provtjocklek på 0.1 µm (100 µg/cm2 ), vilket medför att fissionsfragment som emitteras i vinklar upp till 45° från provets normal har hög sannolikhet att transmitteras ut ur provet. En detektionsuppställning med tio PPAC-detektorer med nio toriumprov mellan dem undersöktes, där detektorerna och proven antogs vara snedställda med 45° från neutronstrålens riktning. Detta möjliggör detektion av fissionsfragment i alla vinklar som är nödvändiga för att kunna mäta hela FFAD. För experimentanläggningen EAR2 vid n_TOF, resulterade en uppskattning av antalet detekterade fissionsevent per sekund i låga mätosäkerheter efter ett par veckor av mättid, vilket antyder att experimentet är görbart.

<p>Light-ions (protons, deuterons, tritons, ³He and α articles) production in the interaction of 175 MeV neutrons with iron and bismuth has been measured using the Medley setup at the The Svedberg Laboratory (TSL) in Uppsala. These measurements have been conducted in the frame of an international collaboration whose aim is to provide the scientific community with new nuclear data of interest for the development of Accelerator Driven Systems, in the range of 20 to 200 MeV. In this Licentiate Thesis I will present the background for the present experiment, the choice of the measured materials (iron and bismuth) and of the energy range. I will then give a short theoretical description of the involved nuclear reactions and of the model used to compare the experimental results. A description of the neutron facility at TSL and of Medley setup will follow. Monte Carlo simulations of the experimental setup have been performed and some results are here reported and discussed. I will present data reduction procedure and finally I will report preliminary double differential cross sections for production of hydrogen isotopes from iron and bismuth at several emission angles. Experimental data will be compared with model calculations with TALYS-1.0; these show better agreement for the production of protons, while seems to overestimate the experimental production of deuterons and tritons.</p>

Light-ions (protons, deuterons, tritons, 3He and α articles) production in the interaction of 175 MeV neutrons with iron and bismuth has been measured using the Medley setup at the The Svedberg Laboratory (TSL) in Uppsala. These measurements have been conducted in the frame of an international collaboration whose aim is to provide the scientific community with new nuclear data of interest for the development of Accelerator Driven Systems, in the range of 20 to 200 MeV. In this Licentiate Thesis I will present the background for the present experiment, the choice of the measured materials (iron and bismuth) and of the energy range. I will then give a short theoretical description of the involved nuclear reactions and of the model used to compare the experimental results. A description of the neutron facility at TSL and of Medley setup will follow. Monte Carlo simulations of the experimental setup have been performed and some results are here reported and discussed. I will present data reduction procedure and finally I will report preliminary double differential cross sections for production of hydrogen isotopes from iron and bismuth at several emission angles. Experimental data will be compared with model calculations with TALYS-1.0; these show better agreement for the production of protons, while seems to overestimate the experimental production of deuterons and tritons.

Präzise neutroneninduzierte Spaltquerschnitte von Actinoiden wie den Plutoniumisotopen haben für die Entwicklung zukünftiger Transmutationstechnologien eine große Bedeutung. Die Unsicherheiten des Pu(242)-Spaltquerschnitts im schnellen Bereich des Spektrums betragen derzeit etwa 21 %. Aktuelle Sensitivitätsstudien haben gezeigt, dass nur eine Reduzierung dieser Unsicherheiten auf unter 5% verlässliche neutronenphysikalische Simulationen zulässt. Diese anspruchsvolle Aufgabe konnte im Rahmen der vorliegenden Arbeit an der Neutronenfugzeitanlage nELBE durchgeführt werden. Dünne, homogene und großfächige Actinoiden-Proben wurden dem Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf innerhalb des TRAKULA-Verbundprojektes zur Verfügung gestellt. Eingesetzt in eine neu entwickelte Spaltionisationskammer ermöglichten sie eine akkurate Bestimmung des Pu(242)- Spaltquerschnitts relativ zu U(235). Die Flächendichten der Plutoniumschichten wurden anhand der spontanen Spaltrate von Pu(242) bestimmt. Aufwändige Teilchentransportsimulationen (durchgeführt mit Geant 4, MCNP 6 und FLUKA) wurden genutzt, um die auftretende Neutronenstreuung zu korrigieren. Die gewonnenen Ergebnisse sind im Rahmen ihrer Unsicherheiten in guter Übereinstimmung mit aktuellen Kerndatenevaluierungen. / Neutron induced fssion cross sections of actinides like the Pu-isotopes are of relevance for the development of nuclear transmutation technologies. For Pu(242), current uncertainties are of around 21%. Sensitivity studies show that the total uncertainty has to be reduced to below 5% to allow for reliable neutron physics simulations. This challenging task was performed at the neutron time-of-fight facility of the new German National Center for High Power Radiation Sources at HZDR, Dresden. Within the TRAKULA project, thin, large and homogeneous deposits of U(235) and Pu(242) have been produced successfully. Using two consecutively placed fssion chambers allowed the determination of the neutron induced fssion cross section of Pu(242) relative to U(235). The areal density of the Plutonium targets was calculated using the measured spontaneous fssion rate. Experimental results of the fast neutron induced fssion of Pu(242) acquired at nELBE will be presented and compared to recent experiments and evaluated data. Corrections addressing the neutron scattering are discussed by using results of different neutron transport simulations (Geant 4, MCNP 6 and FLUKA).

Präzise neutroneninduzierte Spaltquerschnitte von Actinoiden wie den Plutoniumisotopen haben für die Entwicklung zukünftiger Transmutationstechnologien eine große Bedeutung. Die Unsicherheiten des Pu(242)-Spaltquerschnitts im schnellen Bereich des Spektrums betragen derzeit etwa 21 %. Aktuelle Sensitivitätsstudien haben gezeigt, dass nur eine Reduzierung dieser Unsicherheiten auf unter 5% verlässliche neutronenphysikalische Simulationen zulässt. Diese anspruchsvolle Aufgabe konnte im Rahmen der vorliegenden Arbeit an der Neutronenfugzeitanlage nELBE durchgeführt werden. Dünne, homogene und großfächige Actinoiden-Proben wurden dem Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf innerhalb des TRAKULA-Verbundprojektes zur Verfügung gestellt. Eingesetzt in eine neu entwickelte Spaltionisationskammer ermöglichten sie eine akkurate Bestimmung des Pu(242)- Spaltquerschnitts relativ zu U(235). Die Flächendichten der Plutoniumschichten wurden anhand der spontanen Spaltrate von Pu(242) bestimmt. Aufwändige Teilchentransportsimulationen (durchgeführt mit Geant 4, MCNP 6 und FLUKA) wurden genutzt, um die auftretende Neutronenstreuung zu korrigieren. Die gewonnenen Ergebnisse sind im Rahmen ihrer Unsicherheiten in guter Übereinstimmung mit aktuellen Kerndatenevaluierungen.:1 Einleitung 1.1 Partitionierung und Transmutation 1.2 Die Bedeutung von Pu(242) für P&T 1.3 Bisherige Experimente 1.4 Evaluierungen 1.5 Gliederung dieser Arbeit 2 Spaltwahrscheinlichkeit 2.1 Statistisches Modell und Compoundkern 2.2 Kernreaktionsrechnungen 3 Die Neutronenfugzeitanlage nELBE 4 Spaltionisationskammern 4.1 Die nELBE Spaltkammern 4.1.1 Actinoidenschichten 4.1.2 Aufbau 4.1.3 Gasversorgung 4.1.4 Optimierung des elektrischen Feldes 4.1.5 Simulationen von Impulshöhenverteilungen 4.2 Die PTB U(235) Spaltkammer H19 5 Experimente zur Spaltung von Pu(242) 5.1 Experimentelle Bestimmung neutroneninduzierter Spaltquerschnitte 5.2 Messaufbau 5.3 Datenaufnahme und -verarbeitung 5.4 Datenanalyse 5.4.1 Bestimmung der Spontanspaltrate 5.4.2 Bestimmung des neutroneninduzierten Spaltquerschnitts von Pu(242) 5.5 Ergebnisse und Diskussion 5.5.1 Diskussion 5.5.2 Unsicherheiten 5.5.3 Vergleich mit Kernreaktionsrechnungen 6 Zusammenfassung und Ausblick Anhang A.1 Depositionszelle A.2 Neutronenfugzeitanlagen A.3 Spaltfragmentverteilungen mit GEF A.4 Experimenteller Aufbau A.5 Aufbau der Datenaufnahme/-verarbeitung A.5.1 Verwendete Elektronik A.6 Stabilität der Datenaufnahme A.7 Konsistenzbetrachtung der Querschnittsbestimmung Literaturverzeichnis Abbildungsverzeichnis Tabellenverzeichnis Liste der verwendeten Akronyme Publikationen / Neutron induced fssion cross sections of actinides like the Pu-isotopes are of relevance for the development of nuclear transmutation technologies. For Pu(242), current uncertainties are of around 21%. Sensitivity studies show that the total uncertainty has to be reduced to below 5% to allow for reliable neutron physics simulations. This challenging task was performed at the neutron time-of-fight facility of the new German National Center for High Power Radiation Sources at HZDR, Dresden. Within the TRAKULA project, thin, large and homogeneous deposits of U(235) and Pu(242) have been produced successfully. Using two consecutively placed fssion chambers allowed the determination of the neutron induced fssion cross section of Pu(242) relative to U(235). The areal density of the Plutonium targets was calculated using the measured spontaneous fssion rate. Experimental results of the fast neutron induced fssion of Pu(242) acquired at nELBE will be presented and compared to recent experiments and evaluated data. Corrections addressing the neutron scattering are discussed by using results of different neutron transport simulations (Geant 4, MCNP 6 and FLUKA).:1 Einleitung 1.1 Partitionierung und Transmutation 1.2 Die Bedeutung von Pu(242) für P&T 1.3 Bisherige Experimente 1.4 Evaluierungen 1.5 Gliederung dieser Arbeit 2 Spaltwahrscheinlichkeit 2.1 Statistisches Modell und Compoundkern 2.2 Kernreaktionsrechnungen 3 Die Neutronenfugzeitanlage nELBE 4 Spaltionisationskammern 4.1 Die nELBE Spaltkammern 4.1.1 Actinoidenschichten 4.1.2 Aufbau 4.1.3 Gasversorgung 4.1.4 Optimierung des elektrischen Feldes 4.1.5 Simulationen von Impulshöhenverteilungen 4.2 Die PTB U(235) Spaltkammer H19 5 Experimente zur Spaltung von Pu(242) 5.1 Experimentelle Bestimmung neutroneninduzierter Spaltquerschnitte 5.2 Messaufbau 5.3 Datenaufnahme und -verarbeitung 5.4 Datenanalyse 5.4.1 Bestimmung der Spontanspaltrate 5.4.2 Bestimmung des neutroneninduzierten Spaltquerschnitts von Pu(242) 5.5 Ergebnisse und Diskussion 5.5.1 Diskussion 5.5.2 Unsicherheiten 5.5.3 Vergleich mit Kernreaktionsrechnungen 6 Zusammenfassung und Ausblick Anhang A.1 Depositionszelle A.2 Neutronenfugzeitanlagen A.3 Spaltfragmentverteilungen mit GEF A.4 Experimenteller Aufbau A.5 Aufbau der Datenaufnahme/-verarbeitung A.5.1 Verwendete Elektronik A.6 Stabilität der Datenaufnahme A.7 Konsistenzbetrachtung der Querschnittsbestimmung Literaturverzeichnis Abbildungsverzeichnis Tabellenverzeichnis Liste der verwendeten Akronyme Publikationen

Features recently added to the nuclear reaction software TALYS allow the use of the GEF model as a fission fragment generator. GEF generates data for fission fragment yields, total excitation energy (TXE), total kinetic energy (TKE) and individual fragment excitation energies (E*) with their standard deviations through Monte Carlo simulations for TALYS. In this work a framework named McPUFF was developed to couple GEF and TALYS and study the propagation of uncertainties in fission fragment data. The GEF model has a set of 94 parameters which were changed in order to produce perturbed output data. Both GEF and TALYS were modified to allow implementation of the Total Monte Carlo (TMC) method which is a method for handling the propagation of uncertainties throughout the simulation process. The developed framework allows the user to control aspects of the nuclear reaction using a set of input files. It is designed to be fast and memory efficient, performing simulations in parallel and storing all results in an object structure. A demonstration of the framework for the neutron induced fission of 235U, 238U and 239Pu was performed. Randomly perturbed sets of fission fragment data were created by GEF and fed into TALYS for simulation of the evaporation process using a Hauser-Feshbach statistical model. The impact that the perturbation of parameters in GEF has on results from TALYS were investigated for prompt particle multiplicity and energy. The results showed that a perturbation of parameter values in GEF by 3 percent has significant effects on values for fission observables produced by TALYS. The TALYS results for 235U showed an uncertainty for prompt neutron multiplicity of σn = 0.16 neutrons with an uncertainty for the neutron energy of σϵn = 0.03 MeV. The corresponding values for the uncertainty of the prompt γ-ray multiplicity were σγ = 0.10 γ-rays with an uncertainty for the γ-ray energy of σϵγ = 0.02 MeV. An investigation of how changes in the angular momentum of the fission fragments affects the evaporation process in GEF and TALYS was performed through the perturbation of the GEF parameter Jscaling. The results highlighted the need to scrutinize the handling of angular momentum in TALYS.

SCALP (Scintillating ionization Chamber for ALpha particle production in neutron induced reactions) est un dispositif expérimental conçu pour la mesure de la section efficace de la réaction O-16(n,alpha)C-13. Cette réaction fait partie de la HPRL (High Priority Request List) de la NEA. Elle est très importante pour la physique des réacteurs car la production d'hélium a des conséquences sur le fonctionnement des réacteurs électrogènes à neutrons thermiques et neutrons rapides.Les simulations Monte Carlo effectuées avec Geant4 montrent que le dispositif conçu (une chambre d'ionisation scintillante entourée de quatre photo-multiplicateurs) est apte à la mesure de la section efficace. Les sections efficaces des réactions O-16(n,alpha)C-13 et F-19(n,alpha)N-16 (réaction nucléaire étudiée pour la normalisation en section efficace) entre le seuil en énergie et 10MeV peuvent être mesurées expérimentalement avec une erreur relative minimale de 15%.Toutefois, il faudra en améliorer les performances pour obtenir de plus faibles incertitudes comme requis par la NEA : une mesure de la section efficace de la réaction O-16(n,alpha)C-13 avec une précision inférieure à 10%. / SCALP (Scintillating ionization Chamber for ALpha particle production in neutron induced reactions) is an experimental device conceived to measure the cross section of the n-induced reaction on oxygène O-16(n,alpha)C-13. This latter reaction belongs to the HPRL (High Priority Request List) NEA list and is relevant in reactor physics because of the helium production affecting important fast and thermal neutron reactor's parameters.The Monte Carlo simulations with Geant4 showed that the device (a scintillating ionization chamber surrounded by four photomultipliers tubes) can measure and discriminate the different reactions inside the scintillating ion chamber. Cross section of O-16(n,alpha)C-13 and F-19(n,alpha)N-16 (used for cross section normalisation) reactions between the energy threshold and 10MeV could be experimentally measured with a 15% relative accuracy. However some improvement will be necessary to obtain lower uncertainties as requested by the NEA : O-16(n,alpha)C-13 cross section measurement with a accuracy better than 10%.