CANDU®-Like Fields For Neutron Dosimetry

Abstract

It is difficult to undertake neutron dosimetry at CANDU® power plants. This is because no dosimeter is uniformly sensitive over the entire range of neutron energies observed in these environments, which span from thermal up to several MeV. An ability to compensate dosimeter responses for the neutron spectra observed in the field would greatly improve dose measurements. Typically, however, bare 252Cf or (α,n) neutron sources that are skewed towards higher energies are used for dosimeter calibration. In this work, therefore, MCNPX radiation transport simulations are performed to investigate how CANDU®-Like fields may be produced artificially at Canadian Nuclear Laboratories.