Neutron Resonance Transmission Analysis with a Compact Deuterium-Tritium Neutron Generator

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates that Neutron Resonance Transmission Analysis (NRTA) can be effectively performed using a compact, low-cost deuterium-tritium neutron generator, expanding its practical applications across various scientific and security fields.

Contribution

The study introduces a simplified, cost-effective NRTA setup with a compact neutron generator, proving its feasibility for isotope analysis in the 1-30 eV range.

Findings

Successful detection of resonance absorption lines in five elements.

Validation of NRTA with a short 2.6 m neutron beam.

Potential for broad application in science and security fields.

Abstract

Neutron Resonance Transmission Analysis (NRTA) is a spectroscopic technique which uses the resonant absorption of neutrons in the epithermal range to infer the isotopic composition of an object. This spectroscopic technique has relevance in many traditional fields of science and nuclear security. NRTA in the past made use of large, expensive accelerator facilities to achieve precise neutron beams, significantly limiting its applicability. In this work we describe a series of NRTA experiments where we use a compact, low-cost deuterium-tritium (DT) neutron generator to produce short neutron beams (2.6~m) along with a $^6$Li-glass neutron detector. The time-of-flight spectral data from five elements -- silver, cadmium, tungsten, indium, and $^{238}$U -- clearly show the corresponding absorption lines in the 1-30 eV range. The experiments show the applicability of NRTA in this simplified configuration, and prove the feasibility of this compact and low-cost approach. This could significantly broaden the applicability of NRTA, and make it practical and applicable in many fields, such as material science, nuclear engineering, and arms control.