The Total Neutron Cross Sections of Uranium-238 from 0.8 to 30 MeV

A measurement of the total neutron cross sections of ²³⁸ U was made using the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute electron LINAC. The operating electron energy was about 60 MeV, and the beam burst width was 20 nsec. The neutron energies were determined using the time-of-f light technique with an overall resolution of 0.1 nsec/m. The cross sections are presented from 0.8 to 30.0 MeV; the cross-section curve is smooth in this region, and the averaged data have a statistical precision of 1%. The data reported here have been compared with the ENDF/B-III file. The disagreements are within 2% over the energy range 0.8 to 15 MeV. In addition, the experimental cross sections were fit using coupled channel code JUPITOR to obtain optical model and deformation parameters.