Introduction To Neutron Physics: Carlo Cazzaniga

Introduction to
Neutron Physics
Carlo Cazzaniga
[email protected]
Liceo Scientifico Vittorio Veneto

Can you see a neutron?
 Neutrons do not feel electromagnetic force ( qn= 0 )
 Neutrons feel nuclear forces (strong and weak interaction)
Knock-on effect:
n'
φ
n p
θ
p'
Ep' = En cos2θ
You detect secondary charged particles!

Discovery of the Neutron (1932)
Open questions before the discovery:
 How to explain isotops?
 How to explain nuclear spin?
Chadwick's experiment:
Protons up to 5.7 MeV

Neutron Beta Decay
The neutron and the proton are not elementary particles →

made by quarks
- The neutron is no longer stable outside of the nucleus (T=0.25h)

- Neutron can transform into a proton
- n and p masses are a bit different.
Enrico Fermi and
”The via Panisperna boys”
● 1926. Fermi get the chair of Theoretical Physics.
● From 1929, Fermi and Corbino dedicated
themselves to the transformation of the institute
into a modern research centre.
● Studies of Atomic Spectroscopy

● Studies of the interaction of neutrons with all known
elements (nuclear reactions).
● 1934. ”Discovery” of slow neutrons.
● 1938. Due to political situation in Italy and Europe,

the group dispersed and most of its members
emigrated.
Left to right: D'Agostino, Segrè,
Amaldi, Rasetti and Fermi
Fission and other
neutron-nuclei interactions
 There are several reaction channels

 It's a matter of probability
fission
neutron capture
A
n+ X neutron scattering
Reaction
alpha reaction
channels Etc.
Why slow neutrons for fission?
”As big as a barn door”
-24 2
1 barn = 10 cm
Nuclear Fission
Cross section =
probability (to have
fission)
235 238
U vs U
Natural Uranium:
- 0.7% U235
Enrichment!
- 99.3% U238
Building the reactor and the bomb
”The Manhattan Project”
Lawrence, Seaborg and Enrico Fermi

Oppenheimer
 Nuclear Physics becomes a national priority
 New laboratories open (Los Alamos, Oak Ridge, Chicago)
 Hiring of the best scientists
Neutron Cycle
The k parameter is the multiplication factor defined as the

ratio of « useful » neutrons produced in average per fission
of one generation to the number of « useful » neutrons of
the previous generation. k>>1 → bomb
(super-critical)
" ( k − 1) t%
n( t) = n( 0) exp $ ' k≈1 → controlled
$#  '&
reactor (critical)
How to get critical (k≈1)?
The moderator material
Remember:
- Slow Neutrons are best for fission
- Hydrogen (light atoms) can slow neutrons down
Chicago Pile, first controlled

nuclear reactor
Uranium and Graphyte Layers
Coded message:
”The italian navigator has landed the new
world”
”How are the natives?”
”Very Friendly”
How to get supercritical (k>>1)?
High Enrichment
or Plutonium Production
Remember:
- U235 is best for fission than U238
- Enrichment is a very difficult task

- Plutonium production needs a reactor
and has problems of radioactive hazard
Trinity Bomb
The first atomic bomb is readied for
testing near Alamogordo, New
Mexico, in July 1945.
”Little Boy” and ”Fat Man”
TNT
explosive
Plutonium
core
2 sub-critical
pieces of
U235
Little Boy (Hiroshima) Fat Man (Nagasaki)

Gun-type assembly method Implosion assembly method
The key point is to have a configuration which is sub-critical (k<1) before

the bomb is fired, and super-critical (k>1) after.
The decision to drop the bomb
 Was it possible to have the project stopped after the germans were
defeated?
 Could the military use of the bomb be avoided?
Physicists were asked to write a report about the possible application of

the bomb:
"The opinions of our scientific colleagues on the initial use of

these weapons... range from the proposal of a purely technical
demonstration to that of the military application best designed
to induce surrender. […] We find ourselves closer to these
latter views; we can propose no technical demonstration likely
to bring an end to the war; we can see no alternative to direct
military use."
Sir Winston Churchill about the decisions that were taken:
”Who reads the story of that complicated period could tend to

severely judge people and things. He may forget that those people
had to face problems which the good reader has never had to
solve”
In a 1969 interview, Chadwick recalled:

"I realized then that a nuclear bomb was not only possible-- it was
inevitable... and there was nobody to talk to about it. I had many
sleepless nights. But I did realize how very serious it could be.
And I had then to start taking sleeping pills. It was the only
remedy. I've never stopped since then. It's 28 years, and I don't
think I've missed a single night in all those 28 years."
Where does this energy come from?
Nuclei at the top of the curve are more stable. So Heavy nuclei want to
split, light nuclei want to join together. The difference in binding energy is
reliased. 2
E = m c
Electric power from nuclear reactors
Nuclear energy → thermal energy → kinetic energy → electric energy
- Thermodynamic cycle (steam cycle) to transform thermal energy into kinetic

energy.
- Generator (Faraday induction law) to transform kinetic energy into electic

energy
Nuclear fusion
4
D + T → He + n
Tritium is bred from lithium using the neutron

6
Li + n → 4He + T
Creating conditions for fusion
Gravitational Magnetic Inertial

Confinement Confinement Confinement
Heating: Heating: Ohmic (by Heating:
compression electric currents), compression (driven
(gravity), nuclear Microwaves, by a Laser) nuclear
Particles beams, reactions
reactions nuclear reactions
The TOKAMAK
Main next step: ITER
International Thermonuclear Experimental
Reactor
The goal is to achieve a positive energy gain. ITER will be operaing from 2020.
Neutron Physics on 2011 call!
Neutrons from fusion New generation fission

reactors (fast reactors)
Solid state structures Neutron sources

Hints
Books
 ”Atoms in the family” by Laura Fermi
 "Surely you're joking, Mr. Feynman!": adventures of a curious character. By Richard Feynman
Watch on YouTube
 Super quark, documentary completly dedicated to Enrico Fermi (ITA):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h8qP6MxdTAM&list=FLqsLhf6ftZjF4zJ112u6P2Q&feature=mh_lolz
 Feynman, nobel laureate, talks about his experience in Los Alamos:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ah7f-1M2Sg
 Steven Cowley, director of the UK leading fusion research center, talks about nuclear fusion on TV:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6BLFdBfgfU&feature=player_embedded
 Inertial confinement fusion on BBC "Horizon" :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DyB7Ho_W9RE
 Robert Goldston (Princeton Plasma Physics Lab) explains fusion:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vpOmkv8oM4k
Movie
 ”I ragazzi di via Panisperna”, by G.Amelio (ITA)
That's all folks!

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Introduction to

Liceo Scientifico Vittorio Veneto

You detect secondary charged particles!

Protons up to 5.7 MeV

The neutron and the proton are not elementary particles →

- The neutron is no longer stable outside of the nucleus (T=0.25h)

● Studies of Atomic Spectroscopy

● 1938. Due to political situation in Italy and Europe,

 There are several reaction channels

Lawrence, Seaborg and Enrico Fermi

The k parameter is the multiplication factor defined as the

Chicago Pile, first controlled

- Enrichment is a very difficult task

Little Boy (Hiroshima) Fat Man (Nagasaki)

The key point is to have a configuration which is sub-critical (k<1) before

Physicists were asked to write a report about the possible application of

"The opinions of our scientific colleagues on the initial use of

”Who reads the story of that complicated period could tend to

In a 1969 interview, Chadwick recalled:

Nuclear energy → thermal energy → kinetic energy → electric energy

- Thermodynamic cycle (steam cycle) to transform thermal energy into kinetic

- Generator (Faraday induction law) to transform kinetic energy into electic

Tritium is bred from lithium using the neutron

Gravitational Magnetic Inertial

Neutrons from fusion New generation fission

Solid state structures Neutron sources

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