Fission modelling with FIFRELIN

Olivier Litaize (1) , Olivier Serot (1) , Léonie Berge (1)

1 SPRC - Service de Physique des Réacteurs et du Cycle

The nuclear fission process gives rise to the formation of fission fragments and emission of particles ($n$, $\gamma$, $e$^−$). The particle emission from fragments can be prompt and delayed. We present here the methods used in the FIFRELIN code, which simulates the prompt component of the de-excitation process. The methods are based on phenomenological models associated with macroscopic and/or microscopic ingredients. Input data can be provided by experiment as well as by theory. The fission fragment de-excitation can be performed within Weisskopf (uncoupled neutron and gamma emission) or a Hauser-Feshbach (coupled neutron/gamma emission) statistical theory. We usually consider five free parameters that cannot be provided by theory or experiments in order to describe the initial distributions required by the code. In a first step this set of parameters is chosen to reproduce a very limited set of target observables. In a second step we can increase the statistics to predict all other fission observables such as prompt neutron, gamma and conversion electron spectra but also their distributions as a function of any kind of parameters such as, for instance, the neutron, gamma and electron number distributions, the average prompt neutron multiplicity as a function of fission fragment mass, charge or kinetic energy, and so on. Several results related to different fissioning systems are presented in this work. The goal in the next decade will be i) to replace some macroscopic ingredients or phenomenological models by microscopic calculations when available and reliable, ii) to be a support for experimentalists in the design of detection systems or in the prediction of necessary beam time or count rates with associated statistics when measuring fragments and emitted particle in coincidence iii) extend the model to be able to run a calculation when no experimental input data are available, iv) account for multiple chance fission and gamma emission before fission, v) account for the scission neutrons. Several efforts have already been made to replace macroscopic ingredients and phenomenology by microscopic ingredients provided in various nuclear parameter libraries such as electric dipole photon strength functions or HFB level densities. First results relative to theses aspects are presented in this work.

Domaines: Physique Nucléaire Théorique [nucl-th]; Physique Nucléaire Expérimentale [nucl-ex]

Olivier Litaize, Olivier Serot, Léonie Berge. Fission modelling with FIFRELIN. European Physical Journal A, 2015, 51, pp.177. ⟨10.1140/epja/i2015-15177-9⟩. ⟨cea-02428818⟩