Neutron capture and neutron-induced fission experiments on americium isotopes with DANCE

Abstract

Neutron capture cross section data on Am isotopes were measured using the Detector for Advanced Neutron Capture Experiments (DANCE) at Los Alamos National Laboratory. The neutron capture cross section was determined for 241Am for neutron energies between thermal and 320 keV. Preliminary results were also obtained for 243Am for neutron energies between 10 eV and 250 keV. The results on concurrent neutron‐induced fission and neutron‐capture measurements on 242mAm will be presented where the fission events were actively triggered during the experiments. In these experiments, a Parallel‐Plate Avalanche Counter (PPAC) detector that surrounds the target located in the center of the DANCE array was used as a fission‐tagging detector to separate (n,γ) events from (n,f) events. The first direct observation of neutron capture on 242mAm in the resonance region in between 2 and 9 eV of the neutron energy was obtained.