Nuclear Data and Applications
Libby McCutchan
National Nuclear Data Center
Brookhaven National Laboratory, NY USA
What happens to all the data?
Nuclear Data Program
Link between basic science and applications
Nuclear Science Community
•
•
experiments
theory
Application
Community
Nuclear Data Community
✦ compilation
✦ evaluation
✦ dissemination
✦ archival
needs data:
✦ complete
✦ organized
✦ traceable
✦ readable
Nuclear Data Program
www.nndc.bnl.gov
What’s the difference between blue and green?
Two main efforts in nuclear data
They are complementary and we support both
ENDF
Evaluated Nuclear
Data File
ENSDF
Evaluated Nuclear
Structure Data
File
Nuclear Reaction Data (ENDF/B)
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Energy dependent cross sections
Energy and angular distribution
of reaction products
Neutron resonance parameters
Neutron multiplicities
Fission yields
Covariances
…
Focus originally on neutron
induced reactions.
Limited (but expanding)
coverage of chargedparticles, photons, etc.
Most users never see ENDF data
ENDF data are most often used in
data tables that implement collision
physics in application codes
Nuclear Structure File (ENSDF)
Evaluated Nuclear Structure Data File
For important properties of every
nucleus that’s been measured
Critical evaluation of more than 60,000 primary publications
The ENSDF
3,261 nuclides
18,261 datasets
3,261 Adopted
4,245 Decay
9,831 Reactions
It is Unique: Only Nuclear Database continuously updated
It is Complete: All nuclei and all level and radiation properties
It is Versatile: Feeds back into both basic and applied sciences
Why do we need ENDSF?
Used in all aspects of
gamma-ray spectroscopy
Facilitates comparison to theory
Input for other basic science fields
Wide range of applications
require nuclear structure data
What comes to mind when you hear …
Database
Evaluator
What ENSDF evaluation isn’t…
Reading the literature
Making tables
Taking averages
thus… BORING
What ENSDF evaluation is…
Best Recommended Values
(Adopted Levels, Gammas)
Decays
+ + 

…
Reactions
(HI,xn)
(d,p), (p,t)
Coulomb Ex.
(p,p’)
(n,)
….
How to use the databases …
Challenge of new, high quality data from
FRIB(MSU), CARIBU(ANL),TRIUMF,RIKEN,GSI,GANIL, CERN …
~3000 nuclei known
Current mass chain
evaluation schedule:
7-10 years on average
~3000 nuclei yet
to be discovered
• Need data promptly compiled, evaluated & disseminated
• Development of new methodologies, strategies &
dissemination tools catered to specific needs
Will need input & assistance from YOU!!!
Slide courtesy of F. Kondev (ANL)
Users of Nuclear Data
Japan Earthquake
Friday 3/11/2011
> 3 million retrievals / year
Relevance to society
Applications
Many applications involve fission
More than 800
nuclides produced
in the fission of 235U
Beta decay of fission fragments
•
•
•
•
Neutron converted to proton
Electron and antineutrino emitted
Followed by gammas (maybe neutrons)
Average of 3  decays to reach stability
Energy released in beta decay
Q
Electromagnetic (EM) =SIE + SIx-rayEx-ray
Light Particle (LP)=SI-E- + SIceEce + SIAugerEAuger
Total Energy=EM+LP+Eantineutrino= Q(-)
The beta-decay database
3817 “materials”
g.s. and isomers
Basic (T1/2, Q, mode)
Complete, pre 2001
Complete, post 2001
Theory
M. Chadwick et al., Nucl. Data Sheets 112, 2887 (2011).
Decay Heat
Decay Heat(t)=S li x Ni(t) x Ei
Ei: energy released in decay
Following reactor shutdown, approximately what
percentage of core power is given off in decay heat?
a) 0.1 %
b) 1%
c) 10 %
Technically 7%
Decay Heat
New RIB facilities +
New TAGS detectors
Valencia
Japan
Oak Ridge
MSU
Pandemonium leads to incorrect
average  and  energies
Incorporating TAGS data
• IAEA project (2006) identified 22 “high priority” nuclei
• New TAGS data on 7 nuclei from Valencia collaboration
Algora et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 105, 202501 (2010).
Decay Heat for Advance Fuel Cycles
Lots of room for improvement !!
Neutrino Oscillations
𝜃13 =? ?
Anti-neutrinos from reactors
Detection through inverse 
decay on proton
Reactors are copious
producers of antineutrinos
𝜈𝑒 + 𝑝 → 𝑒 + + 𝑛
But cross section is tiny !!
𝜎 ~10−16 𝑚𝑏
Reaction threshold : ~1.8 MeV
Antineutrino Experiments
And then the story got more interesting
Potential for new physics
Deficit in antineutrinos in all short baseline experiments
And more interesting
Potential for new physics
Daya Bay
arXiv: 1412.2199
Connection to ENSDF
Summation method
(or ab-initio method)
Benefits
•
•
•
Links ENSDF to another basic
science community
Provides integral measurements
(check on ENSDF)
Spurs new measurements which
will improve ENSDF
Single nucleus – sum  branches*intensity
Total – sum  spectrum*fission yield
𝑆 𝐸𝑒 =
𝐹𝑌𝑖 𝑆𝑖 (𝐸𝑖 )
𝑖
Summation for 235U
Summation for 239Pu
Main Contributors at ~5 MeV
235U
239Pu
37-Rb-92
41-Nb-100
39-Y-96
39-Y-96
39-Y-96
39-Y-96
41-Nb-100
37-Rb-92
41-Nb–100
37-Rb–92
55-Cs – 142
41-Nb –100
55-Cs-142
55-Cs-140
52-Te- 135
55-Cs-142
37-Rb-90
55-Cs-142
37-Rb-92
52-Te-135
55-Cs-140
38-Sr-95
55-Cs- 140
39-Y-99
52-Te –135
52-Te-135
53-I- 137
55-Cs-143
38-Sr-95
39-Y- 98m
39-Y-99
53-I-138
241Pu
238U
Top 8 contribute 30%-40% to the overall spectrum
New measurements underway based on these sensitivity studies
Anti-neutrinos for applied purposes
SONGS
N.S. Bowden, Nucl. Phys. B 217, 134 (2011)
Spectrum shape and anti-neutrino multiplicity depends on target.
Can be used in non-proliferation and reactor monitoring
Feedback on our products
• We work for YOU!!
• Comments/suggestions/criticisms are welcome
• If you notice an error, tell us
mccutchan@bnl.gov