Speaker
Description
$^{54}$Fe capture cross section measurements were conducted at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) Gaerttner Linear Accelerator (LINAC) Center using an enriched $^{54}$Fe sample in the keV energy region. $^{54}$Fe is a constituent of natural iron, which is present in a large variety of nuclear grade materials.Therefore, it is important to have an accurate understanding of the cross section of $^{54}$Fe, which can be measured experimentally. In the time-of-flight measurements previously conducted at the LINAC, an array of four C$_{6}$D$_{6}$ detectors surrounded the sample and data were collected using a digital data acquisition system. In this work, the experimental apparatus was upgraded with additional C$_{6}$D$_{6}$ detectors, allowing for more accurate measurements from 1 keV – 2 MeV while preserving the low neutron sensitivity of the system. The capture yield of the $^{54}$Fe measurements was normalized using the saturated resonances in Au and Ta. The capture yield was subsequently compared to evaluations and prior experimental data. Results were found to have good agreement in certain energy regions. The improved experimental apparatus used in these measurements will greatly enhance RPI’s ability to measure neutron capture cross sections in the keV region.
