Determination of the number of ²³⁸U target nuclei and simulation of the neutron induced fission fragment energy spectrum

Highlights: • With the experiments and simulations, the amount of ²³⁸U target nuclei are decided. • The simulated energy spectrum accords well with the measured one. • The effect of the non-uniformity on the fission energy spectrum is proved to be significant. - Abstract: A Monte Carlo simulation of the energy spectrum of the α particles emitted from a ²³⁸U₃O₈ sample is performed. Through comparing the simulated and measured energy spectra of the α particles, the non-uniformity of the ²³⁸U₃O₈ sample is obtained, and then the number of ²³⁸U target nuclei is determined. Using the obtained non-uniformity, a Monte Carlo simulation is developed to simulate the energy spectrum of neutron induced fission fragments. The simulated and measured energy spectra of neutron induced fission fragments agree well with each other.