Measurement of the half-life of 95mTc and the 96Ru (n, x) 95mTc reaction cross-section induced by D–T neutron with covariance analysis

Abstract

Using off-line γ-ray spectroscopy in conjunction with the neutron activation approach, the half-life of 95mTc and the cross-section of the 96Ru (n, x) 95mTc reaction generated by D-T neutrons were determined. The Chinese Academy of Engineering Physics' (CAEP) K-400 neutron generator was used to create the neutron beam from the T (d, n) 4He reaction. The observed half-life of 95mTc was found to be 61.88 ± 0.22 days by the use of exponential function fitting and a thorough description of the uncertainty evaluation. This is a significant reduction in uncertainty when compared to the currently recommended value. The cross-sections of the 96Ru (n, x) 95mTc reaction at the 13.85 ± 0.2, 14.30 ± 0.2, and 14.72 ± 0.2 MeV neutron energies were measured in relation to the 93Nb (n, 2n) 92mNb monitor reaction based on the measurement of the 95mTc half-life. Covariance analysis was used to carry out a complete uncertainty propagation process taking into account the correlations between various parameters. The cross-sections were then given together with their uncertainties and correlation matrix. Next, theoretically derived values utilizing the TALYS-1.95 and EMPIRE-3.2.3 programs were used to compare the experimentally determined cross-sections with the literature data found in the EXFOR database. Current experimental results are much more accurate with detailed uncertainties and covariance information, which is essential for enhancing the quality of the nuclear database and confirming the theoretical model's dependability.