Reactor time constant at criticality

The equilibrium flux profile of a critical reactor is distorted and the decay of the distortion studied. It is found that: (a) the relative contribution of the prompt jump to the transient decreases with the square of core size; (b) the prompt-jump time constant increases with the square of core size; and (c) the prompt-jump contribution and time constant depend on the form of the perturbation. (author)