The capture of neutrons by deuterons

Abstract

The cross-sections for capture of neutrons by deuterons, involving emission of both electric and magnetic dipole radiation, are calculated using the wave functions obtained by Buckingham & Massey (1941) in the course of an application of the resonating-group structure method to the elastic scattering of neutrons by deuterons. The value found for capture of neutrons with emission of magnetic dipole radiation is found to be very sensitive to the particular form taken for the various wave functions, owing to a very high degree of cancellation that occurs in the integrations. As a result it is out of the question at present to provide accurate theoretical values for this process. All that can be said is that the cross-section for capture of thermal neutrons by deuterons is likely to be abnormally small. It may well be 10 -28 cm. 2 or less. This is in general agreement with observation. For capture of fast neutrons with emission of electric dipole radiation there is much less uncertainty in the calculated values although the cross-sections are very small, of the order of a few times 10 -29 cm. 2. The actual value of the cross-section in this case depends on the assumed type of nucleonic interaction, i.e. whether it is of exchange character or not. Results are also given for the inverse process—the photodisintegration of the triton.