https://doi.org/10.1140/epjp/s13360-024-05237-5
Regular Article
Study of the multi-parameter performance impact of the n–γ response function of a water-pumping-injection single-sphere neutron spectrometer
1
Sichuan University of Science and Engineering, 643000, Zigong, China
2
Chengdu University of Technology, 610059, Chengdu, China
Received:
27
December
2023
Accepted:
5
May
2024
Published online:
21
May
2024
To enhance the performance of the water-pumping-injection single-sphere neutron spectrometer (CLYC-WSNS), the n–γ response function of CLYC-WSNS in the neutron energy range of 10–9–20 MeV is calculated using Monte Carlo simulations. Multiple parameters such as the water temperature, auxiliary material lead layer, and type of nuclear reaction are investigated. First, the effect of water temperature is negligible within the energy region of the neutron response peak, with the fluctuation of the prompt gamma response being within 3.0% at most energy points. Second, the lead layer significantly suppresses the prompt gamma response, with the level of suppression being influenced by the water layer thickness and lead layer position. Except when the outer three-layer gaps are filled with air, the lead layer demonstrates an average suppression ability on the prompt gamma response exceeding 10.0%, reaching up to 27.0% in some cases. Third, the contribution of the 6Li(n, t) reaction surpasses 99.5% for all the measurement units except for energies above 1 MeV. Additionally, the maximum contributions of the 35Cl(n, p) and 35Cl(n, α) reactions are 26.5% and 17.0%, respectively. Finally, an evaluation of the anisotropy effect is conducted, which reveals that the neutron and prompt gamma responses exhibit significant angular dependence, with maximum values of 95.8% and 53.5%, respectively. Overall, this work provides a comprehensive analysis of the n–γ response function characteristics of the CLYC-WSNS system, offering support and a theoretical foundation for accurate measurements in various application scenarios and assisting in system performance optimization.
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© The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Società Italiana di Fisica and Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature 2024. Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.
