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We have measured the neutron capture cross sections of the stable magnesium isotopes 24,25,26 Mg in the energy range of interest to the s process using the neutron time-of-flight facility n_TOF at CERN. Capture events from a natural metal sample and from samples enriched in 25 Mg and 26 Mg were recorded using the total energy method based on C 6 2 H 6 detectors. Neutron resonance parameters were extracted by a simultaneous resonance shape analysis of the present capture data and existing transmission data on a natural isotopic sample. Maxwellian-averaged capture cross sections for the three isotopes were calculated up to thermal energies of 100 keV and their impact on s-process analyses was investigated. At 30 keV the new values of the stellar cross section for 24 Mg, 25 Mg, and 26 Mg are 3.8±0.2 mb, 4.1±0.6 mb, and 0.14±0.01 mb, respectively.

Observations of galactic gamma-ray activity have challenged the current understanding of nucleosynthesis in massive stars. Recent measurements of (60)Fe abundances relative to ;{26}Al;{g} have underscored the need for accurate nuclear information concerning the stellar production of (60)Fe. In light of this motivation, a first measurement of the stellar (60)Fe(n, gamma)(61)Fe cross section, the predominant destruction mechanism of (60)Fe, has been performed by activation at the Karlsruhe Van de Graaff accelerator. Results show a Maxwellian averaged cross section at kT = 25 keV of 9.9 +/-_{1.4(stat)};{2.8(syst)}mbarn, a significant reduction in uncertainty with respect to existing theoretical discrepancies. This result will serve to significantly constrain models of (60)Fe nucleosynthesis in massive stars.

The n_TOF Collaboration has built and commissioned a high-performance detector for (n, gamma) measurements called the Total Absorption Calorimeter (TAC). The TAC was especially designed for measuring neutron capture cross-sections of low-mass and/or radioactive samples with the accuracy required for nuclear technology and stellar nucleosynthesis. We present a detailed description of the TAC and discuss its overall performance in terms of energy and time resolution, background discrimination, detection efficiency and neutron sensitivity. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

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A high-resolution measurement of the neutron-induced fission cross section of 234 U and 237 Np has been performed at the CERN Neutron Time-of-Flight facility. The cross sections have been determined in a wide energy range from 1 eV to 1 GeV using the evaluated 235 U cross section as reference. In these measurements the energy determination for the 234 U resonances could be improved, whereas previous discrepancies for the 237 Np resonances were confirmed. New cross-section data are provided for high neutron energies that go beyond the limits of prior evaluations, obtaining important differences in the case of 237 Np.

The neutron time-of-flight facility n_TOF at CERN, fully operational since 2002, combines a high instantaneous neutron flux with high energy resolution. The wide energy range and the high neutron flux per time-of-flight burst result in a much enhanced signal to background ratio for neutron capture of radioactive isotopes and makes this facility well suited for the measurement of high quality neutron-induced reaction cross-sections. Neutrons are created by spallation reactions induced by a pulsed 20 GeV/c proton beam impinging on a lead target. A 5 cm water slab surrounding the lead target serves as a coolant and at the same time as a moderator of the spallation neutron spectrum, providing a wide energy spectrum from 0.1 eV to about 250 MeV. By the end of 2005, a first phase of data taking has been successfully terminated. Fission and capture experiments have been performed on a variety of isotopes of interest for nuclear astrophysics, advanced nuclear technologies and for basic nuclear physics. The instrumentation developed for this facility consists of parallel plate avalanche counter and fission ionization chamber detectors for the fission experiments and of low mass C6D6 detectors and a 4 pi BaF2 total absorption calorimeter for capture experiments. A new data acquisition system, based on sampling of the detector signals, has been developed to cope with the high count rates and to minimize the effective dead time to only a few tens of nanosecond. A second phase of data taking is planned to start in 2007, after an upgrade of the spallation target. On the longer term, the construction of a flight path at 20 m resulting in an increased neutron flux of about a factor of 100 opens new possibilities

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