High-intensity neutron generation via laser-driven photonuclear reaction

Abstract

The generation of high-peak-intensity neutrons through a photonuclear reaction was demonstrated using the Laser for Fast Ignition Experiments (LFEX) at Osaka University. Up to 109 neutrons/shot were generated from a 1mm sized gold target. Using Monte Carlo simulations, the neutron spectrum from keV to MeV was found to be independent of the γ-ray spectrum. The typical peak neutron intensity of 1021 neutrons /cm2/s at the target surface was estimated, and it should be a useful tool for nuclear synthesis experiments.