Description
The research on Burnable Absorbers (BA) inside nuclear power plants has demonstrated that erbium is a viable alternative to gadolinium. Erbium enhances the safety of fission power plants and plays a significant role in nuclear astrophysics, particularly in s-process nucleosynthesis. However, the evaluated uncertainty data for erbium isotopes remain relatively high. To address this, an experimental campaign at n_TOF EAR1 was proposed. The project aims to measure the capture cross section of $^{167}$Er, which is listed as a priority by the NEA HPRL. The measurements were conducted in 2023 using an array of C$_6$D$_6$ detectors and a precisely characterized natural sample. The energy range of interest for this experiment extends from thermal neutron energy up to 50 eV. In 2024, additional measurements with C$_6$D$_6$ detectors were performed on enriched $^{166}$Er and $^{167}$Er samples at n_TOF EAR1. These measurements will extend the explored energy range of the capture cross section up to the keV region.
| Facility identifier | n_TOF |
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