• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
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• v.21 no.7
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• pp.603-609
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• 2008

Photoluminescence (PL) of neutron-irradiated GaN films and nanowires is investigated in this study. The GaN films and nanowires were irradiated by neutron beams in air at room temperature, and the neutron-irradiated films and nanowires were annealed in an atmosphere of $NH_3$ at temperatures ranging from 500 to $1100^{\circ}C$. The line-shapes of the PL spectra taken from the neutron-irradiated GaN films and nanowires were changed differently with increasing annealing temperature. In this study, light-emitting centers created in the neutron-irradiated GaN films and nanowires are examined and their origins are discussed. In addition, it is suggested here that the neutron-transmutation-doping is a simple and useful means of homogeneous impurity doping into nanowires with control of the doping concentration.

• Analytical Science and Technology
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.57-61
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• 1992

For the neutron spectrum measurement, $^6Li$ neutron spectrometer system is installed. The characteristic of the $^6Li$ detector are investigated using a $^{137}Cs$ and $^{207}Bi$ point source, and the neutron capture peaks and the pulse height spectrum using an $^{214}Am-Be$ neutron source are measured. Furthermore, the pulse height spectrum for the irradiation time variation from the (214)^Am-Be neutron source, and for the distance variation between detector and source, and the threshold variation of discriminator are measured.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.41 no.6
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• pp.813-820
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• 2009

A rapid pneumatic transfer system (PTS) for an instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA) is developed as an automatic irradiation facility involving the measurement of a short half-life nuclide and a delayed neutron counting system. Three new PTS designs with improved functions were constructed at the HANARO research reactor in 2006. The new system is composed of a manual system and an automatic system for both an INAA and a delayed neutron activation analysis (DNAA). The design and basic conception of a modified PTS are described, and the functions of system operation and control, radiation protection and emissions of radioactive gas are improved. In addition, a form of capsule transportation of these systems is tested. The experimental results pertaining to the irradiation characteristics with variation of the neutron flux and the temperature of the irradiation position with the irradiation time are presented, as is an analysis of the reference material for analytical quality control and uncertainty assessments.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.53 no.11
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• pp.3784-3789
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• 2021

We report a simple technique for direct neutron spectroscopy using pure LaCl₃ crystals. Pure LaCl₃ crystals exhibit considerably better pulse shape discrimination (PSD) capabilities with relatively good energy resolution as compared with Ce-doped LaCl₃ crystals. Single crystals of pure and Ce-doped LaCl₃ were grown using an inhouse-developed Bridgman furnace. PSD capabilities of these crystals were investigated using ²⁴¹Am and ¹³⁷Cs sources. Fast neutron detection was tested using a²⁵²Cf source and three separate bands corresponding to electron, proton, and alpha were observed. The proton band induced by the ³⁵Cl(n,p)³⁵S reaction can be used for direct neutron spectroscopy because proton energy is proportional to incident neutron energy. Owing to good scintillation performance and excellent PSD capabilities, pure LaCl₃ is a promising candidate for space detectors and other applications that necessitate gamma/fast neutron discrimination capability.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.53 no.1
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• pp.344-350
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• 2021

As the High Flux Advanced Neutron Application Reactor (HANARO) has been recently required to support new R&D relevant to future nuclear systems requiring a much higher neutron fluence, the development of irradiation capsule technology for long-term irradiation testing was performed in three steps (3, 5, 10 dpa). At first, several design improvements of a standard capsule were suggested based on a failure analysis of the capsule and successfully applied for irradiation testing at HANARO at up to eight reactor operation cycles equivalent to 3 dpa. Based on a schematic stress analysis of the vulnerable parts of the previous capsule, an optimized design of the capsule was made for 5 dpa irradiation. The newly designed capsule was safely out-pile tested up to 450 days, which was equivalent to 5 dpa irradiation in the reactor. The test results were submitted to the Reactor Safety Review Committee of HANARO and irradiation testing for 5 dpa was approved. The capsule was also successfully out-pile tested to evaluate the possibility of irradiation testing for 10 dpa. For a higher neutron fluence exceeding 10 dpa, new capsule technologies, including a new capsule that has a different bottom design and neutron flux boosting capsule, were also suggested.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.55 no.8
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• pp.2984-2996
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• 2023

A 100 kW thermal power pool-type light water reactor and Pu(Be) as a fast neutron source were used to determine the appropriate carrier for irradiating boron-containing samples with neutron beams. The tested materials (carriers) were subjected to neutron beams in the reactor's tangential channel. The geometrical arrangement of experimental facilities relative to the neutron beam trajectory, as well as the effect of sample thickness on the count rate, were investigated. The majority of the detectable charged particles emitted by the neutron beam's interaction with tested materials and the detector's detecting layer are protons (recoiled hydrogen) and particles generated in nuclear reactions (protons and alpha particles), respectively. Stopping and Range of Ions in Matter (SRIM) software was used to do theoretical calculations for the range of expected released particles in various materials, including human tissue. The results of measurement and calculation are in good agreement. According to experiments and theoretical calculations, the number of protons emitted by tissue-like materials may commit a dose comparable to that of boron capture reactions. Furthermore, the range of protons is significantly larger than that of alpha particles, which most probably changes dose distribution in healthy cells surrounding the tumor, which is undesirable in the BNCT approach.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.55 no.1
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• pp.201-208
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• 2023

The dependence of the electrical characteristics on the fast neutron fluence of an epitaxial 4H-SiC Schottky barrier diode (SBD) was investigated. The 30 MeV cyclotron was used for fast neutron irradiation. The neutron fluences evaluated through Monte Carlo simulation were in the 2.7 × 10¹¹ to 1.45 × 10¹³ neutrons/cm² range. Current-voltage and capacitance-voltage measurements were performed to characterize the samples by extracting the parameters of the irradiated SBDs. Neutron-induced defects in the epitaxial layer were identified and quantified using a deep-level transient spectroscopy measurement system developed at the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute. As the neutron fluence increased from 2.7 × 10¹¹ to 1.45 × 10¹³ neutrons/cm², the concentration of the Z_1/2 defects increased by approximately 20 times. The maximum defect concentration was estimated as 1.5 × 10¹⁴ cm^-3 at a neutron fluence of 1.45 × 10¹³ neutrons/cm².

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.55 no.5
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• pp.1871-1877
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• 2023

The main goal of the coordinated project development of therapeutic radiopharmaceuticals of Y-90 and Re-188 is to exploit advancements in radionuclide production technology. Here, direct and indirect production methods with medium reactor and cyclotron are compared to evaluate derived neutron flux and production yield. First, nano-sized ¹⁸⁶W and ⁸⁹Y specimens are suspended in water in a quartz vial by FLUKA simulation. Then, the solution is irradiated for 4 days under 9E+14 n/cm2/s neutron flux of reactor. Also, a neutron activator including three layers-lead moderator, graphite reflector, and polyethylene absorbent- is simulated and tungsten target is irradiated by 60 MeV protons of cyclotron to generate induced neutrons for ¹⁸⁸W and ⁹⁰Sr production via neutron capture. As the neutron energy reduced, the flux gradually increased towards epithermal range to satisfy (n/2n,γ) reactions. The obtained specific activities at saturation were higher than the reported experimental values because the accumulated epithermal flux and nano-sized specimens influence the outcomes. The beta emitters, which are widely utilized in brachytherapy, appeal an alternative route to locally achieve a rational yield. Therefore, the proposed method via neutron activator may ascertain these broad requirements.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• v.34 no.1
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• pp.9-14
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• 2009

High density polyethylene (HDPE) is degraded due to a radiation-induced oxidation when it is used as a neutron moderator in a neutron counter for a nuclear material accounting of spent fuels. The HDPE exposed to the gamma-ray emitted from the fission products in a spent nuclear fuel results in a radiation-induced degradation which changes its original molecular structure to others. So a neutron moderating power variation of HDPE, irradiated by a gamma radiation, was investigated in this work. Five HDPE moderator structures were exposed to the gamma radiation emitted from a $^{60}Co$ source to a level of $10^5-10^9$ rad to compare their post-irradiation properties. As a result of the neutron measurement test with 5 irradiated HDPE structures and a neutron measuring system, it was confirmed that the neutron moderating power for the $10^5$ rad irradiated HDPE moderator revealed the largest decrease when the un-irradiated pure one was used as a reference. It implies that a neutron moderating power variation of HDPE is not directly proportional to the integrated gamma dose rate. To clarify the cause of these changes, some techniques such as a FTIR, an element analysis and a densitometry were employed. As a result of these analyses, it was confirmed that the molecular structure of the gamma irradiated HDPEs had partially changed to others, and the contents of hydrogen and oxygen had varied during the process of a radiation-induced degradation. The mechanism of these changes cannot be explained in detail at present, and thus need further study.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.38 no.1
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• pp.93-98
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• 2006

The radial uniformity of neutron irradiation in silicon ingots for neutron transmutation doping (NTD) at HANARO is examined by both calculations and measurements. HANARO has two NTD holes named NTD1 and NTD2. We have been using the NTD2 hole for 5 in. NTD commercial service, and we intend to use two holes for 6 in. NTD. The objective of this study is to predict the radial uniformity of 6 in. NTD at the two holes. The radial neutron flux distributions inside single crystal and noncrystal silicon loaded at the NTD2 hole are calculated by the VENTURE code. For NTD1, the radial distributions of the reaction rate for a 6 in. NTD with a neutron screen are calculated by MCNP, and measured by gold wire activation. The results of the measurements are compared with those of the calculations. From the VENTURE calculation, it is confirmed that the neutron flux distribution in the single crystal silicon is much flatter than that in the non-crystal silicon. The non-uniformities of the measurements for radial neutron irradiation are slightly larger than those of the calculations. However, excluding local dips in the measurements, the overall trends of the distributions are similar. The radial resistivity gradient (RRG) for a 5 in. silicon ingot is estimated to be about $1.5\%$. For a 6 in. ingot, the RRG of a silicon ingot irradiated at HANARO is predicted to be about $2.1\%$. Also, from the experimental results, we expect that the RRG would not be larger than $4.4\%$.