Development of nanosized graphene material for neutron intensity enhancement below cold neutron energy

Teshigawara, Makoto; Ikeda, Yujiro*; Muramatsu, Kazuo*; Sutani, Koichi*; Fukuzumi, Masafumi*; Noda, Yohei*; Koizumi, Satoshi*; Saruta, Koichi; Otake, Yoshie*

Journal of Neutron Research, 26(2-3), p.69 - 74, 2024/09

https://doi.org/10.3233/JNR-240002

Slow neutrons, such as cold neutrons, are important non-destructive probes not only for basic physics but also for the structural genomics advancements in the life sciences and the battery technology advancements needed for the transition to a hydrogen society. Neutron-based science is also known as high-neutron-intensity-dependent science. A new unique method focusing on nanosized particle aggregation has been proposed to increase neutron intensity in that energy region. The method is based on intensity enhancement by multiple coherent scatterings with nanosized particle aggregation. The aggregation of nanosized particles matches the wavelength of below cold neutrons, causing a similar effect to coherent scattering, so-called Bragg scattering, leading to neutron intensity enhancement by several orders of magnitude. Nanodiamonds and magnesium hydride have recently been studied numerically and experimentally. The major challenge with nanodiamonds in practical applications is the molding method. Another carbon structure, graphene is focused on to find a solution to this problem. It is hypothesized that nanosized graphene could aid coherent neutron scattering under particle size conditions similar to nanodiamonds. We report the potential of nanosized graphene as a reflector material below cold neutrons, together with experimental results.

Contribution to risk reduction in decommissioning works by the elucidation of basic property of radioactive microparticles (Contract Research); FY2020 Nuclear Energy Science & Technology and Human Resource Development Project

Collaborative Laboratories for Advanced Decommissioning Science; Ibaraki University*

JAEA-Review 2023-021, 112 Pages, 2024/02

JAEA-Review-2023-021.pdf:7.1MB

The Collaborative Laboratories for Advanced Decommissioning Science (CLADS), Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA), had been conducting the Nuclear Energy Science & Technology and Human Resource Development Project (hereafter referred to "the Project") in FY2020. The Project aims to contribute to solving problems in the nuclear energy field represented by the decommissioning of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station, Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings, Inc. (TEPCO). For this purpose, intelligence was collected from all over the world, and basic research and human resource development were promoted by closely integrating/collaborating knowledge and experiences in various fields beyond the barrier of conventional organizations and research fields. The sponsor of the Project was moved from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology to JAEA since the newly adopted proposals in FY2018. On this occasion, JAEA constructed a new research system where JAEA-academia collaboration is reinforced and medium-to-long term research/development and human resource development contributing to the decommissioning are stably and consecutively implemented. Among the adopted proposals in FY2018, this report summarizes the research results of the "Contribution to Risk Reduction in Decommissioning Works by the Elucidation of Basic Property of Radioactive Microparticles" conducted from FY2018 to FY2021 (this contract was extended to FY2021). The present study aims to understand the basic properties (size, chemical composition, isotopic composition - including concentration of -emitters, electrostatic properties, and optical properties, etc.) of fine particles composed of silicate with insoluble properties which contain regions of highly concentrated radioactive cesium (Cs) released to the environment by the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station of TEPCO in 2011 March.

Evaluation of the remaining spent extraction solvent in vermiculite after leaching tests via PIXE analysis

Arai, Yoichi; Watanabe, So; Hasegawa, Kenta; Okamura, Nobuo; Watanabe, Masayuki; Takeda, Keisuke*; Fukumoto, Hiroki*; Ago, Tomohiro*; Hagura, Naoto*; Tsukahara, Takehiko*

Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research B, 542, p.206 - 213, 2023/09

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nimb.2023.07.003

Magnetic ordering and structural phase transitions of NdSn ( = Rh and Ir)

Shimoda, Ami*; Iwasa, Kazuaki*; Kuwahara, Keitaro*; Sagayama, Hajime*; Nakao, Hironori*; Ishikado, Motoyuki*; Ohara, Takashi; Nakao, Akiko*; Hoshikawa, Akinori*; Ishigaki, Toru*

JPS Conference Proceedings (Internet), 38, p.011091_1 - 011091_6, 2023/05

https://doi.org/10.7566/JPSCP.38.011091

Nested antiferromagnetic spin fluctuations and non-Fermi-liquid behavior in electron-doped CeCoNiIn

Sakai, Hironori; Tokunaga, Yo; Kambe, Shinsaku; Zhu, J.-X.*; Ronning, F.*; Thompson, J. D.*; Kotegawa, Hisashi*; To, Hideki*; Suzuki, Kohei*; Oshima, Yoshiki*; et al.

Physical Review B, 106(23), p.235152_1 - 235152_8, 2022/12

https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.106.235152

We investigate the electronic state of Ni-substituted CeCoNiIn by nuclear quadrupole and magnetic resonance (NQR/NMR) techniques. The heavy fermion superconductivity below K for is suppressed by Ni substitutions, and reaches zero for . The In NQR spectra for and 0.25 can be explained by simulating the electrical field gradient that is calculated for a virtual supercell with density functional theory. The spin-lattice relaxation rate indicates that Ni substitution weakens antiferromagnetic correlations that are not localized near the substituent but instead are uniform in space. The temperature () dependence of for shows a maximum around K and decreases toward almost zero when temperature is further reduced as if a gap might be opening in the magnetic excitation spectrum; however, the magnetic specific heat and the static magnetic susceptibility evolve smoothly through with a dependence. The peculiar T dependence of and non-Fermi-liquid specific heat and susceptibility can be interpreted in a unified way by assuming nested antiferromagnetic spin fluctuations in a quasi-two-dimensional electronic system.

Multipole polaron in the devil's staircase of CeSb

Arai, Yosuke*; Kuroda, Kenta*; Nomoto, Takuya*; Tin, Z. H.*; Sakuragi, Shunsuke*; Bareille, C.*; Akebi, Shuntaro*; Kurokawa, Kifu*; Kinoshita, Yuto*; Zhang, W.-L.*; et al.

Nature Materials, 21(4), p.410 - 415, 2022/04

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41563-021-01188-9

Nanoscale heterogeneity induced by nonmagnetic Zn dopants in the quantum critical metal CeCoIn; In NQR/NMR and Co NMR study

Sakai, Hironori; Tokunaga, Yo; Kambe, Shinsaku; Zhu, J.-X.*; Ronning, F.*; Thompson, J. D.*; Ramakrishna, S. K.*; Reyes, A. P.*; Suzuki, Kohei*; Oshima, Yoshiki*; et al.

Physical Review B, 104(8), p.085106_1 - 085106_12, 2021/08

https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.104.085106

Antiferromagnetism in a prototypical quantum critical metal CeCoIn is known to be induced by slight substitutions of non-magnetic Zn atoms for In. In nominally 7% Zn substituted CeCoIn, an antiferromagnetic (AFM) state coexists with heavy fermion superconductivity. Heterogeneity of the electronic states is investigated in Zn doped CeCoIn by means of nuclear quadrupole and magnetic resonances (NQR and NMR). Site-dependent NQR relaxation rates indicate that the AFM state is locally nucleated around Zn substituents in the matrix of a heavy fermion state, and percolates through the bulk at the AFM transition temperature . At lower temperatures, an anisotropic superconducting (SC) gap below the SC transition temperature , and the SC state permeates through the AFM regions via a SC proximity effect. Applying an external magnetic field induces a spin-flop transition near 5 T, reducing the volume of the AFM regions. Consequently, a short ranged inhomogeneous AFM state survives and coexists with a paramagnetic Fermi liquid state at high fields.

Activities of Working Group on Verification of PASCAL; Fiscal years 2016 and 2017

Li, Y.; Hirota, Takatoshi*; Itabashi, Yu*; Yamamoto, Masato*; Kanto, Yasuhiro*; Suzuki, Masahide*; Miyamoto, Yuhei*

JAEA-Review 2020-011, 130 Pages, 2020/09

JAEA-Review-2020-011.pdf:9.31MB

For the improvement of the structural integrity assessment methodology on reactor pressure vessels (RPVs), the probabilistic fracture mechanics (PFM) analysis code PASCAL has been developed and improved in Japan Atomic Energy Agency based on the latest knowledge. The PASCAL code evaluates the failure probabilities and frequencies of Japanese RPVs under transient events such as pressure thermal shock considering neutron irradiation embrittlement. In order to confirm the reliability of the PASCAL as a domestic standard code and to promote the application of PFM on the domestic structural integrity assessments of RPVs, it is important to perform verification activities, and summarize the verification processes and results as a document. On the basis of these backgrounds, we established a working group, composed of experts on this field besides the developers, on the verification of the PASCAL module and the source program of PASCAL was released to the members of working group. This report summarizes the activities of the working group on the verification of PASCAL in FY2016 and FY2017.

Recent verification activities on probabilistic fracture mechanics analysis code PASCAL4 for reactor pressure vessel

Lu, K.; Katsuyama, Jinya; Li, Y.; Miyamoto, Yuhei*; Hirota, Takatoshi*; Itabashi, Yu*; Nagai, Masaki*; Suzuki, Masahide*; Kanto, Yasuhiro*

Mechanical Engineering Journal (Internet), 7(3), p.19-00573_1 - 19-00573_14, 2020/06

https://doi.org/10.1299/mej.19-00573

Successive phase transitions in IrSn (: La and Ce) investigated using neutron and X-ray diffraction

Nakazato, Seiya*; Iwasa, Kazuaki*; Hashimoto, Daisuke*; Shiozawa, Mami*; Kuwahara, Keitaro*; Nakao, Hironori*; Sagayama, Hajime*; Ishikado, Motoyuki*; Ohara, Takashi; Nakao, Akiko*; et al.

JPS Conference Proceedings (Internet), 30, p.011128_1 - 011128_6, 2020/03

https://doi.org/10.7566/JPSCP.30.011128