Back-n white neutron source at CSNS and its applications

Back-streaming neutrons from the spallation target of the China Spallation Neutron Source(CSNS)that emit through the incoming proton channel were exploited to build a white neutron beam facility(the so-called Back-n white neutron source),which was completed in March 2018.The Back-n neutron beam is very intense,at approximately 29107 n/cm2/s at 55 m from the target,and has a nominal proton beam with a power of 100 kW in the CSNS-I phase and a kinetic energy of 1.6 GeV and a thick tungsten target in multiple slices with modest moderation from the cooling water through the slices.In addition,the excellent energy spectrum spanning from 0.5 eV to 200 MeV,and a good time resolution related tothe time-of-flight measurements make it a typical white neutron source for nuclear data measurements;its overall performance is among that of the best white neutron sources in the world.Equipped with advanced spectrometers,detectors,and application utilities,the Back-n facility can serve wide applications,with a focus on neutron-induced cross-sectional measurements.This article presents an overview of the neutron beam characteristics,the experimental setups,and the ongoing applications at Backn.

Initial years'neutron-induced cross-section measurements at the CSNS Back-n white neutron source

The Back-n white neutron source(known as Back-n)is based on back-streaming neutrons from the spallation target at the China Spallation Neutron Source(CSNS).With its excellent beam properties,e.g.,a neutron flux of approximately 1.8×107 n/cm2/s at 55 m from the spallation target,energy range spanning from 0.5 eV to 200 MeV,and time-of-flight resolution of a few per thousand,along with the equipped physical spectrometers,Back-n is considered to be among the best facilities in the world for carrying out nuclear data measurements.Since its completion and commencement of operation in May 2018,five types of cross-section measurements concerning neutron capture cross-sections,fission cross-sections,total cross-sections,light charged particle emissions,in-beam gamma spectra,and more than forty nuclides have been measured.This article presents an overview of the experimental setup and result analysis on the neutron-induced cross-section measurements and gamma spectroscopy at Back-n in the initial years.

Proposal for muon and white neutron sources at CSNS

The China Spallation Neutron Source （CSNS） is a large scientific facility with the main purpose of serving multidisciplinary research on material characterization using neutron scattering techniques. The accelerator system is to provide a proton beam of 120 kW with a repetition rate of 25 Hz initially （CSNSⅠ）, progressively upgradeable to 240 kW （CSNS-Ⅱ） and 500 kW （CSNS-Ⅱ＇）. In addition to serving as a driving source for the spallation target, the proton beam can be exploited for serving additional functions both in fundamental and applied research. The expanded scientific application based on pulsed muons and fast neutrons is especially attractive in the overall consideration of CSNS upgrade options. A second target station that houses a muon-generating target and a fast-neutron-generating target in tandem, intercepting and removing a small part of the proton beam for the spallation target, is proposed. The muon and white neutron sources are operated principally in parasitic mode, leaving the main part of the beam directed to the spallation target. However, it is also possible to deliver the proton beam to the second target station in a dedicated mode for some special applications. Within the dual target configuration, the thin muon target placed upstream of the fast-neutron target will consume only about 5% of the beam traversed; the majority of the beam is used for fast-neutron production. A proton beam with a beam power of about 60 kW, an energy of 1.6 GeV and a repetition rate of 12.5 Hz will make the muon source and the white neutron source very attractive to multidisciplinary researchers.