An improved method for estimating the neutron background in measurements of neutron capture reactions

• DOI: 10.1016/j.nima.2016.04.086
• Publication Date: 2016-04-30T02:47:30Z
• Authors: P. Žugec; D. Bosnar; N. Colonna; F. Gunsing
• Keywords: Physics - Instrumentation and Detectors; FOS: Physical sciences; Instrumentation and Detectors (physics.ins-det); [PHYS.NEXP]Physics [physics]/Nuclear Experiment [nucl-ex]; Computational Physics (physics.comp-ph); 01 natural sciences; 03 medical and health sciences; 0302 clinical medicine; 0103 physical sciences; neutron sensitivity ; neutron background ; GEANT4 simulations ; neutron time-of-flight ; n_TOF ; neutron capture ; neutron scattering; Nuclear Experiment (nucl-ex); Nuclear Experiment; Physics - Computational Physics

11 pages, 9 figures<br/>The relation between the neutron background in neutron capture measurements and the neutron sensitivity related to the experimental setup is examined. It is pointed out that a proper estimate of the neutron background may only be obtained by means of dedicated simulations taking into account the full framework of the neutron-induced reactions and their complete temporal evolution. No other presently available method seems to provide reliable results, in particular under the capture resonances. An improved neutron background estimation technique is proposed, the main improvement regarding the treatment of the neutron sensitivity, taking into account the temporal evolution of the neutron-induced reactions. The technique is complemented by an advanced data analysis procedure based on relativistic kinematics of neutron scattering. The analysis procedure allows for the calculation of the neutron background in capture measurements, without requiring the time-consuming simulations to be adapted to each particular sample. A suggestion is made on how to improve the neutron background estimates if neutron background simulations are not available.<br/>