Evaluation of²⁵²Cf Prompt Fission Neutron Data from 0 to 20 MeV by Watt Spectrum Fit

Abstract

Recent measurements define the prompt fission neutron spectrum of 252Cf from 25 keV to 20 MeV with sufficient accuracy to show that the standard representation by a Maxwell spectrum with the temperature parameter TM = 1.42 MeV is not adequate. The next simplest macroscopic representation, a Watt spectrum with the two parameters Tw = 1.18 MeV and Ew = 0.36 MeV, fits the recent data surprisingly well, at least as well as the best currently available microscopic models of fission neutron emission. The resulting chi-square does not indicate any need for a more sophisticated description, nor is the fit improved by refinements such as superposition of two Watt distributions (for a representative fragment pair), or relativistic corrections.