| Scientific Committee Paper | |
| Report number | CERN-SPSC-2025-038 ; SPSC-P-375 |
| Title | n_ACT@BDF: A Neutron Activation Station at the SPS Beam Dump Facility (BDF) |
| Project Manager/Technical Coordinator | Lederer-Woods, Claudia |
| Author(s) | Lederer-Woods, C (University of Edinburgh, UK) ; Mengoni, A (Agenzia nazionale per le nuove tecnologie, l’energia e lo sviluppo economico sostenibile (ENEA), Italy) |
| Corporate author(s) | CERN. Geneva. SPS and PS Experiments Committee ; SPSC |
| Collaboration | n_TOF Collaboration |
| Series | (Proposal) |
| Submitted by | claudia.lederer@cern.ch on 11 Nov 2025 |
| Subject category | Detectors and Experimental Techniques |
| Abstract | We propose n_ACT@BDF, a high-flux neutron activation station integrated into the SPS Beam Dump Facility (BDF), which can be operated parasitically to the Search for Hidden Particles (SHiP) experiment. The high intensity neutron fields produced by spallation reactions of the 400 GeV/c, 4 × 10^13 p/pulse proton beam (average power ∼ 350 kW) with the tungsten target, can be exploited for accurate neutron- induced reaction cross section measurements on minute and radioactive samples, addressing pressing open questions in Nuclear Astrophysics and Nuclear Technologies. Three complementary stations are foreseen: BIAS (internal, highest flux), BEAS (external, collimated neutron beam), and BRIS (a high-flux rabbit station with pneumatic transfer to a Class A surface laboratory). The wide neutron energy spectrum available can be shaped by compact boron carbide B4C filters to produce quasi-Maxwellian spectra over a range of equivalent kT-values. The facility uniquely complements the neutron time-of-flight facility n TOF and leverages proximity to ISOLDE for production of radioactive targets, while taking advantage of available expertise and infrastructure available at CERN. The physics programme spans world-first measurements of key reactions relevant to the synthesis of the heavy elements in stars, measurements addressing the unexplained abundance of radioisotopes in our galaxy, and key reactions on reactor structural materials informing future fission and fusion reactor designs. A staged deployment fully aligned with the installation of SHiP is foreseen, with BIAS/BEAS starting operations in 2032, and full BRIS operation post-LS4 (2035+). |
Email contact(s) : claudia.lederer@ed.ac.uk ; Marco.Calviani@cern.ch
Record created 2025-11-11, last modified 2025-11-20
