Measurement of the neutron-induced fission cross section of 230Th at the CERN n_TOF facility

Euratom "Support safe operation of nuclear systems" program MIS 5033021European Union (EU) European Social Fund (ESF)Greek national funds through the action 84755

Mapping inundations by sea level rise in the Eastern Canary Islands

En este trabajo se presenta un análisis de las posibles inundaciones asociadas a diferentes escenarios de subida del nivel del mar para finales del siglo XXI en las islas orientales del archipiélago de Canarias. A diferencia de otros trabajos que suelen emplear datos procedentes de mareógrafo, se ha utilizado como fuente principal de información la altimetría por satélite. La principal ventaja de este tipo de datos estriba en que se trata de registros absolutos, por tanto libres de otros procesos asociados a fenómenos de componente vertical como sucede con los datos provenientes de mareógrafos. A partir de los resultados estadísticos obtenidos se ha realizado un análisis espacial asociando cada sector costero a su correspondiente celdilla de los datos provenientes de los registros de los satélites. Independientemente del escenario del IPCC de subida del nivel del mar elegido las morfologías arenosas, especialmente en los sectores costeros meridionales, muestran una elevada exposición al fenómeno de subida del nivel del mar.The aim of this work is to analyze the potential inundations caused by sea level rise, which data have been obtained from different scenarios. This analysis has been made for the eastern Canary Islands. The main data sources for this study are the altimetry images from satellite observations that have been made since 1992 to the present. The main advantage of the use of this type of data lies on the fact that they are free of any vertical component, as it often occurs with the data from tidal gauges. A spatial analysis has been made from the obtained results, in which each coastal area has been associated to its satellite corresponding cell. Independently of the chosen IPCC scenario, sandy areas located at the southernmost regions of the islands show a high exposure to sea level rise phenomena

Measurement of the 77Se(n, γ) cross section up to 200 keV at the n_TOF facility at CERN

The 77 Se ( n , γ ) reaction is of importance for 77 Se abundance during the slow neutron capture process in massive stars. We have performed a new measurement of the 77 Se radiative neutron capture cross section at the Neutron Time-of-Flight facility at CERN. Resonance capture kernels were derived up to 51 keV and cross sections up to 200 keV. Maxwellian-averaged cross sections were calculated for stellar temperatures between k T = 5 keV and k T = 100 keV , with uncertainties between 4.2% and 5.7%. Our results lead to substantial decreases of 14% and 19% in 77 Se abundances produced through the slow neutron capture process in selected stellar models of 15 M ⊙ and 2 M ⊙ , respectively, compared to using previous recommendation of the cross section.UK Science and Facilities Council (ST/M006085/1)MSMT of the Czech RepublicThe Charles University UNCE/SCI/013 projectEuropean Research Council ERC-2015-StG No. 67749

Measurement of the 14N(n, p) 14C cross section at the CERN n_TOF facility from subthermal energy to 800 keV

Background: The 14N(n, p) 14C reaction is of interest in neutron capture therapy, where nitrogen-related dose is the main component due to low-energy neutrons, and in astrophysics, where 14N acts as a neutron poison in the s process. Several discrepancies remain between the existing data obtained in partial energy ranges: thermal energy, keV region, and resonance region. Purpose: We aim to measure the 14N(n, p) 14C cross section from thermal to the resonance region in a single measurement for the first time, including characterization of the first resonances, and provide calculations of Maxwellian averaged cross sections (MACS). Method: We apply the time-of-flight technique at Experimental Area 2 (EAR-2) of the neutron time-of-flight (n_TOF) facility at CERN. 10B(n, & alpha;) 7Li and 235U(n, f ) reactions are used as references. Two detection systems are run simultaneously, one on beam and another off beam. Resonances are described with the R-matrix code SAMMY. Results: The cross section was measured from subthermal energy to 800 keV, resolving the first two resonances (at 492.7 and 644 keV). A thermal cross section was obtained (1.809 & PLUSMN; 0.045 b) that is lower than the two most recent measurements by slightly more than one standard deviation, but in line with the ENDF/B-VIII.0 and JEFF-3.3 evaluations. A 1/v energy dependence of the cross section was confirmed up to tens of keV neutron energy. The low energy tail of the first resonance at 492.7 keV is lower than suggested by evaluated values, while the overall resonance strength agrees with evaluations. Conclusions: Our measurement has allowed determination of the 14N(n, p) cross section over a wide energy range for the first time. We have obtained cross sections with high accuracy (2.5%) from subthermal energy to 800 keV and used these data to calculate the MACS for kT = 5 to kT = 100 keV.p>Instituto de Salud Carlos III Spanish Government PID2020-117969RB-I00Junta de Andalucia (FEDER Andalucia 2014-2020) P20-00665 B-FQM-156UGR20UK Science and Facilities Council ST/M006085/1 ST/P004008/1European Research Council (ERC) 677497Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities under the FPU Grant FPU17/0230

Fission program at n_TOF

Since its start in 2001 the n_TOF collaboration developed a measurement program on fission, in view of advanced fuels in new generation reactors. A special effort was made on measurement of cross sections of actinides, exploiting the peculiarity of the n_TOF neutron beam which spans a huge energy domain, from the thermal region up to GeV. Moreover fission fragment angular distributions have also been measured. An overview of the cross section results achieved with different detectors is presented, including a discussion of the 237Np case where discrepancies showed up between different detector systems. The results on the anisotropy of the fission fragments and its implication on the mechanism of neutron absorption, and in applications, are also shown

La Universidad Accesible, la Universidad de Todos: políticas de adaptación y mejoras docentes para la inclusión de las personas con discapacidad

Se expone qué se define como Universidad Accesible y la importancia que adquiere disponer de una Universidad Accesible para garantizar la inclusión de las personas con discapacidad. Para ello se analizan las condiciones que precisa la accesibilidad en la universidad, los parámetros que debe cumplir y los aspectos que se deben considerar para su aplicación en los campus, tecnologías y servicios universitarios. Se pretende reflexionar sobre la situación actual en lo que se refiere al cumplimiento de los requisitos de Accesibilidad y Diseño para Todos, así como las necesidades de adaptación que requiere, tratando los aspectos propios de la docencia y la investigación, los arquitectónicos y los que afectan a las tecnología de la información. Por último se reflexiona sobre la situación actual y se identifican retos de futuro que permitirán garantizar una universidad accesible

First results of the Am-241(n,f) cross section measurement at the Experimental Area 2 of the n_TOF facility at CERN

This research is co-financed by Greece and the European Union (European Social Fund-ESF) through the Operational Programme Human Resources Development, Education and Lifelong Learning in the context of the project "Strengthening Human Resources Research Potential via Doctorate Research" (MIS-5000432), implemented by the State Scholarships Foundation (IKY). Also, the authors would like to acknowledge the support of the European Commission under the CHANDA project (7th Framework Programme).Feasibility, design and sensitivity studies on innovative nuclear reactors that could address the issue of nuclear waste transmutation using fuels enriched in minor actinides, require high accuracy cross section data for a variety of neutron-induced reactions from thermal energies to several tens of MeV. The isotope Am-241 (T-1/2= 433 years) is present in high-level nuclear waste (HLW), representing about 1.8 % of the actinide mass in spent PWR UOx fuel. Its importance increases with cooling time due to additional production from the beta-decay of Pu-241 with a half-life of 14.3 years. The production rate of 241Am in conventional reactors, including its further accumulation through the decay of Pu-241 and its destruction through transmutation/incineration are very important parameters for the design of any recycling solution. In the present work, the Am-241(n,f) reaction cross-section was measured using Micromegas detectors at the Experimental Area 2 of the n_TOF facility at CERN. For the measurement, the U-235(n,f) and U-238(n,f) reference reactions were used for the determination of the neutron flux. In the present work an overview of the experimental setup and the adopted data analysis techniques is given along with preliminary results.European Union (European Social Fund-ESF) through the Operational Programme Human Resources Development, Education and Lifelong Learning MIS-5000432European Commission under the CHANDA project (7th Framework Programme

Detector set up for the measurements of the neutron-induced fission cross section of 235U relative to n-p scattering up to 150 MeV at CERN-n_TOF

A new measurement of the U-235(n,f) fission cross section was carried out at n_TOF. The experiment covered the neutron energy range from 10 MeV up to 500 MeV, and it used the H-1(n,n) cross section as normalization for the neutron fluence measurement. In this contribution, the measurements and the characterization of the detectors covering the incident energy range up to 150 MeV are discussed

New detection systems for an enhanced sensitivity in key stellar (n,γ) measurements

Neutron capture cross-section measurements are fundamental in the study of astrophysical phenomena, such as the slow neutron capture (s-) process of nucleosynthesis operating in red-giant and massive stars. However, neutron capture measurements via the time-of-flight (TOF) technique on key s-process nuclei are often challenging. Difficulties arise from the limited mass (∼mg) available and the high sample-related background in the case of the unstable s-process branching points. Measurements on neutron magic nuclei, that act as s-process bottlenecks, are affected by low (n,γ) cross sections and a dominant neutron scattering background. Overcoming these experimental challenges requires the combination of facilities with high instantaneous flux, such as n_TOFEAR2, with detection systems with an enhanced detection sensitivity and high counting rate capabilities. This contribution reviews some of the latest detector developments in detection systems for (n,γ) measurements at n_TOF, such as i-TED, an innovative detection system which exploits the Compton imaging technique to reduce the dominant neutron scattering background and s-TED, a highly segmented total energy detector intended for high flux facilities. The discussion will be illustrated with results of the first measurement of key the s-process branching-point reaction 79Se(n,γ).European Research Council (ERC)European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (ERC Consolidator Grant project HYMNS, with grant agreement No. 681740)FJC2020-044688-IICJ220-045122-I funded by MCIN/AEI/ 10.13039/501100011033European Union NextGenerationEU/PRTRSpanish Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación under grants PID2019- 104714GB-C21FPA2017-83946-C2-1-P, FIS2015-71688-ERCPIE-201750I26CERN policy in matters of scientific publications, the n_TOF Collaboratio

First measurement of the 94Nb(n,γ) cross section at the CERN n_TOF facility

One of the crucial ingredients for the improvement of stellar models is the accurate knowledge of neutron capture cross-sections for the different isotopes involved in the s-,r- and i- processes. These measurements can shed light on existing discrepancies between observed and predicted isotopic abundances and help to constrain the physical conditions where these reactions take place along different stages of stellar evolution. In the particular case of the radioactive 94Nb, the 94Nb(n,γ) cross-section could play a role in the determination of the s-process production of 94Mo in AGB stars, which presently cannot be reproduced by state-of-the-art stellar models. There are no previous 94Nb(n,γ) experimental data for the resolved and unresolved resonance regions mainly due to the difficulties in producing highquality samples and also due to limitations in conventional detection systems commonly used in time-of-flight experiments. Motivated by this situation, a first measurement of the 94Nb(n,γ) reaction was carried out at CERN n_TOF, thereby exploiting the high luminosity of the EAR2 area in combination with a new detection system of small-volume C6D6-detectors and a high quality 94Nb-sample. The latter was based on hyper-pure 93Nb material activated at the high-flux reactor of ILL-Grenoble. An innovative ring-configuration detection system in close geometry around the capture sample allowed us to significantly enhance the signal-to-background ratio. This set-up was supplemented with two conventional C6D6-detectors and a highresolution LaCl3(Ce)-detector, which will be employed for addressing reliably systematic effects and uncertainties. At the current status of the data analysis, 18 resonance in 94Nb+n have been observed for the first time in the neutron energy range from thermal up to 10 keV.European Research Council (ERC)European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (ERC Consolidator Grant project HYMNS, with grant agreement No. 681740)ICJ220-045122-IMCIN/AEI/ 10.13039/501100011033European Union NextGenerationEU/PRTRSpanish Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación under grants PID2019-104714GB-C21, FPA2017-83946-C2-1-P, FIS2015-71688-ERCCSICPIE-201750I2