Prompt Fission Neutron Spectrum Measurements of 252Cf Using a Multiple Gamma Tagging Method
Accurate measurement of the prompt fission neutron spectrum is extremely important to several aspects of nuclear engineering. The spectrum for the spontaneous fission of 252Cf is particularly of use since other spectra are often measured as a ratio to Californium and the efficiency of neutron detectors can be measured using it. A measurement was performed at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in order to provide a new high accuracy measurement of the spectrum particularly in the regions of little data below 0.5 MeV and above 10 MeV. A measurement was performed using the multiple gamma tagging method and provided a new dataset in the region from 50 keV to 7 MeV which agreed well with previous measurements and theory. Preliminary measurements have also been performed to test the feasibility of using this method to measure the high portion of the spectrum from 5 MeV up to 15 MeV.
