Measurements of the 27Al(α,n) Thick Target Yield near Threshold

• Published in: Nuclear science and engineering 2022-10, Vol.197 (4)
• Main Authors: Brandenburg, K., Hamad, G., Meisel, Z., Brune, C. R., Carter, D. E., Derkin, J., Ingram, D. C., Jones-Alberty, Y., Kenady, B., Massey, T. N., Saxena, M., Soltesz, D., Subedi, S. K., Warren, J.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: alpha induced reactions; nuclear astrophysics; NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS; SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS
• ISSN: 0029-5639; 1943-748X

In this work, we present results from direct measurements of the 27Al(α,n) thick-target yield from laboratory incident energies Eα ≈ 3 to 5 MeV, performed with the 3HeBF3 Giant Barrel (HeBGB) neutron detector at the Edwards Accelerator Laboratory. Our measurements have a small energy cadence in order to address discrepancies and sparseness of thick-target-yield data sets existing for this energy region. We find general agreement with existing data sets, including yields derived from cross-section data, while resolving a discrepancy between existing thick-target-yield data sets for Eα ≈ 4–5 MeV. However, for Eα < 3.5 MeV, our results are substantially lower than previous thick-target-yield data and somewhat larger than yields calculated from existing cross-section data. Our data complete the energy range needed for estimates of the 27Al(α,n) contribution to neutrino and dark matter detector backgrounds and result in increased viability of 27Al(α,n) as a plasma diagnostic tool at fusion facilities such as the National Ignition Facility.