7-Li(p,n) Nuclear Data Library for Incident Proton Energies to 150 MeV

TL;DR

This paper develops an ENDF-formatted nuclear data library for proton interactions with Lithium-7 up to 150 MeV, combining experimental data and nuclear models for improved accuracy in simulations.

Contribution

It introduces a comprehensive evaluation method that integrates experimental data and nuclear models to create an accurate, usable data library for proton-Lithium-7 reactions up to 150 MeV.

Findings

The data library accurately models key reaction channels.

The library improves radiation transport simulation fidelity.

The evaluation method effectively combines experimental and theoretical data.

Abstract

We describe evaluation methods that make use of experimental data, and nuclear model calculations, to develop an ENDF-formatted data library for the reaction p + Li7 for incident protons with energies up to 150 MeV. The important 7-Li(p,n_0) and 7-Li(p,n_1) reactions are evaluated from the experimental data, with their angular distributions represented using Lengendre polynomial expansions. The decay of the remaining reaction flux is estimated from GNASH nuclear model calculations. The evaluated ENDF-data are described in detail, and illustrated in numerous figures. We also illustrate the use of these data in a representative application by a radiation transport simulation with the code MCNPX.