Linearly polarized photons from Compton backscattering of laser light for nuclear resonance fluorescence experiments

Ohgaki, Hideaki; Noguchi, Toshihiko; Sugiyama, Shigeo; Yamazaki, Tetsuo; Mikado, T.; Chiwaki, M.; Yamada, Ken‐ichi; Suzuki, Ryoichi; Sei, N.

doi:10.1016/0168-9002(94)91681-0

Cited by 52 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 22 publications

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“…Pioneering experimental activities in the field of gamma ray production have been worked out in ADONE [14], Novorsibirsk [15], Super ACO [16], Duke University [17], and ESRF [18]. In the TERAS ring 2 × 10 4 gamma rays per second in the MeV energy range were produced by Compton scattering [19]. In SPring-8 the achieved flux reached 2.5 × 10 6 gamma rays per second at 2.4 GeV photon energy.…”

Section: B Circular Compton Sourcesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Equilibrium energy spread and emittance in a Compton ring: An alternative approach

Chaikovska

Variola

2014

Phys. Rev. ST Accel. Beams

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In this article the Campbell's theorem is used to evaluate the equilibrium emittance and energy spread in a Compton ring. This method allows us to have an efficient analytical approach separating the contributions of the Compton cross section from the luminosity factor. The consequent advantage is given by the possibility to have an easy extrapolation for the "nonclassical" cases like the polarized Compton backscattering or the evaluation of the equilibrium given by different radiation mechanisms. The effects accounting for the polarized Compton backscattering in the article are evaluated numerically. The analytical results in the nonpolarized case and in the negligible recoil effect approximation are in excellent agreement with the values obtained by matching the Compton damping rate with the quantum fluctuations, and they show that the equilibrium energy spread and emittance are independent from the luminosity.

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Section: B Circular Compton Sourcesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Equilibrium energy spread and emittance in a Compton ring: An alternative approach

Chaikovska

Variola

2014

Phys. Rev. ST Accel. Beams

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“…When a laser beam is scattered off a beam of relativistic electrons, the photons are up-shifted in energy to produce photons whose energies are given by [13,14,15,16,17]:…”

Section: Quasi-monoenergetic Sourcesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nuclear Resonance Fluorescence to Measure Plutonium Mass in Spent Nuclear Fuel

Ludewigt¹

2011

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Executive SummaryThe Next Generation Safeguard Initiative (NGSI) of the U.S. Department of Energy is supporting a multi-lab/university collaboration to quantify the plutonium (Pu) mass in spent nuclear fuel (SNF) assemblies and to detect the diversion of pins with non-destructive assay (NDA) methods. Nuclear Resonance Fluorescence (NRF) has been investigated as one of 14 NDA techniques included in the NGSI study. In contrast to many of the other, older techniques, NRF had not previously been considered for nuclear safeguards or similar applications and basic aspects including nuclear data, modeling and simulation tools, measurement methods, and instrumentation needed to be researched.Nuclear resonance fluorescence is the process by which a nucleus is excited to a specific state by the absorption of a photon, then subsequently de-excites to the ground state by the emission of one or more γ rays. The energies of the γ rays are characteristic of the specific state that underwent NRF and therefore are characteristic of the isotope. The emitted NRF γ rays are detected at backwards angles where the backgrounds from elastically and inelastically scattered photons are lowest. Two distinct assay methods, the backscatter and the transmission methodsare analyzed in this report. In both cases a beam of energetic photons excites nuclear resonances of the isotopes of interest (IOI) within the SNF. In the backscatter assay geometry, the emitted NRF γ rays detected at backwards angles are a measure of the amount of a specific isotope in the SNF. In transmission assay, a detection system down-stream of the SNF measures the excess attenuation of resonant-energy photons due to NRF in the SNF assembly. The detection system consists of a thin sheet composed of the isotope of interest, called the transmission detector (TD), and a detector array that measures the NRF γ rays emanating from the TD. Given the low concentrations of the Pu isotopes in SNF and the relatively small integrated nuclear resonance cross sections, the main challenge for achieving precise and accurate measurements lies in accruing sufficient counting statistics in an acceptable measurement time.The goals of this study were to design and model suitable NRF measurement methods, to quantify capabilities and corresponding instrumentation requirements, to investigate possible implementations, and to evaluate the prospects and potential of the technique for the assay of SNF assemblies, i.e., for the measurement of their Pu isotopic content.Analytical models were developed that enabled calculation of NRF signals for a variety of backscatter and transmission geometries. Extensive simulations were performed using the computer code, Monte Carlo N-particle eXtended (MCNPX) to calculate photon scattering effects, i.e., to determine scattered, non-resonant background and the notch refilling in transmission measurements. We found that MCNPX underestimated the non-resonant elastic scattering at backwards angles by multiple orders of magnitude mainly due to a flawed treatment of ...

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“…When a laser beam is scattered off a beam of relativistic electrons, the photons are up-shifted in energy to produce photons whose energies are given by [11,12,13,14,15]:…”

Section: Quasi-monoenergetic Sourcesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nuclear Resonance Fluorescence for Safeguards Applications

Ludewigt¹,

Quiter²,

Ambers³

2011

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Executive SummaryIn nuclear resonance fluorescence (NRF) measurements, resonances are excited by an external photon beam leading to the emission of gamma rays with specific energies that are characteristic of the emitting isotope. The promise of NRF as a non-destructive analysis technique (NDA) in safeguards applications lies in its potential to directly quantify a specific isotope in an assay target.This report addresses the assessment of NRF-based methods for safeguards applications in the context of related studies at LBNL, LLNL, and BNL. Our FY10 effort was comprised of three tasks: the study of the non-resonant scattering background and its simulation with MCNPX, analysis of our previously performed NRF transmission experiment, and the assessment of NRF for safeguards applications.While the recent correction of the treatment of Rayleigh scattering in MCNPX resulted in much better agreement with some experimental data, the photonuclear processes, which are important contributors to the elastic scattering background at higher energies, are still not included. Our analysis showed that calculations based on ENDF form factors as currently implemented in MCNPX could underestimate the elastic scattering cross section by as much as a factor of ten for a uranium target at photon energies above 2 MeV. Even larger discrepancies, up to several orders of magnitude, are possible for lighter elements such as zirconium. It would be desirable to at least include nuclear Thomson scattering in MCNPX simulations for NRF studies.The transmission experiment, using a bremsstrahlung beam and a target of comparable thickness to a spent nuclear fuel assembly, demonstrated sensitivity to a 238 U content of 1%. However, the precision was count rate limited. The data obtained in this experiment indicated notch refill that could change the measured NRF rates by up to 5% for the worst case. A correction based on MCNPX modeling has been implemented in the analysis.NRF-based methods were assessed for three potential safeguards applications: the isotopic assay of spent nuclear fuel (SNF), the measurement of 235 U enrichment in UF 6 cylinders, and the determination of 239 Pu in mixed oxide (MOX) fuel. Given the small integrated nuclear resonance cross sections, the main challenge in these application, albeit to a varying degree, lies in accruing of sufficient counting statistics in an acceptable measurement times for achieving the desired uncertainties.Pu isotopic masses in SNF could precisely be determined in transmission measurements using bremsstrahlung sources, but such measurements would require up to 100's of hours, a very intense bremsstrahlung source, and a very large array of fast detectors with high energy resolution. Quasimonoenergetic photon sources such as Laser Compton scattering sources could potentially enable greatly improved performance. As an example, assuming a photon source with a 1 keV energy spread, an intensity of 6x10 8 ph/eV/s, and operating continuously or at very high pulse rates, the measurement time would be on ...

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Linearly polarized photons from Compton backscattering of laser light for nuclear resonance fluorescence experiments

Cited by 52 publications

References 22 publications

Equilibrium energy spread and emittance in a Compton ring: An alternative approach

Equilibrium energy spread and emittance in a Compton ring: An alternative approach

Nuclear Resonance Fluorescence to Measure Plutonium Mass in Spent Nuclear Fuel

Nuclear Resonance Fluorescence for Safeguards Applications

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