Evaluation of the n + 3H Cross Section at En=14 MeV

Abstract

The n + {sup 3}H cross section is important for NIF diagnostics. As the d-{sup 3}H fusion at NIF generates neutrons with an energy of 14 MeV, the precise knowledge of the n + {sup 3}H cross section and in particular the elastic cross section at that energy is crucial. Experimental data at E{sub n} = 14 MeV are not accurate with large disagreements among different sets of measurements. On the other hand, the mirror reaction p-{sup 3}He is well studied and accurate data are available in a wide range of proton energies. We use several theoretical approaches to evaluate the n-{sup 3}H cross section by fine-tuning the theory to reproduce the p-{sup 3}He elastic differential cross sections. The good agreement between the R-matrix analysis and scaled ab initio calculations gives us confidence that our evaluated n + {sup 3}H cross section is accurate with an uncertainty on the order of 5%.