Light charged-particle production in 96 MeV neutron-induced reactions on carbon and oxygen.

In recent years, an increasing number of applications involving fast neutrons have been developed or are under consideration, e.g. radiation treatment of cancer, neutron dosimetry at commercial aircraft altitudes, soft-error effects in computer memories, accelerator-driven transmutation of nuclear waste and energy production and determination of the response of neutron detectors.

Experimental kerma coefficients of biologically important materials at neutron energies below 75 MeV.

The present work summarizes our results already published on cross sections and partial kerma coefficients for hydrogen, carbon, and oxygen and then applies them for determining experimental partial and total kerma coefficients of composite biologically important materials. Double-differential cross sections for light-charged particle production (proton, deuteron, triton, and alpha particle) induced by fast neutrons on hydrogen, carbon, and oxygen have been experimentally measured at several incident energies from 25 to 75 MeV. The measurements covered the laboratory angular range 20 degrees to 160 degrees and were extended to very forward and very backward angles by using a reliable extrapolation procedure.

Experimental partial and total kerma coefficients for carbon deduced from microscopic cross sections at incident neutron energies below 75 MeV.

The double-differential cross sections for proton, deuteron, triton and alpha particle production in fast neutron induced reactions on carbon have been measured at several neutron energies from 25 to 75 MeV in the angular range from 20 degrees to 160 degrees. Experimental energy-differential, angle-differential and total cross sections are deduced, and consequently the partial and total kerma coefficients. The obtained experimental partial kerma coefficients are extrapolated down to the threshold energy of each measured reaction channel.

Experimental hydrogen kerma factors for incident neutron energies from 25 to 75 MeV.

Hydrogen kerma factors and their uncertainties are deduced on an experimental basis, starting from our previously measured differential cross sections completed with available data from the literature, in the incident neutron energy range 25 to 75 MeV. The deduced experimental kerma factors are compared with theoretical predictions. A simple to use parametrization of the hydrogen kerma factor values in the incident neutron energy range 0.

Experimental double-differential cross sections and derived kerma factors for oxygen at incident neutron energies from reaction thresholds to 65 MeV.

The double-differential cross sections (energy spectra) for the (n, px), (n, dx), (n, tx) and (n, rx) reactions on oxygen have been measured for nine incident neutron energies in the range 25 to 65 MeV at lab angles between 20 degrees and 160 degrees in steps of 10 degrees. From these measurements, the energy differential cross sections have been determined and consequently the partial and total kerma factors. Based on the obtained experimental partial kerma factors in the incident neutron energy range 25-65 MeV, a procedure is proposed for the extrapolation of these values to the reaction threshold energy of each measured reaction channel.