Influence of chemical binding on the neutron width Γn

In the studies of the broadening of neutron resonance reactions, it has always been assumed that one can neglect the dependence of the neutron width Γn on the initial and intermediate state of the lattice when the capturing atom is bound in a crystal. In this paper, we calculate the mean value of the resolvent of the Schrodinger equation to derive a formal expression of Γn that shows that the neutron width depends on the initial and intermediate state of the lattice after formation of the compound nucleus. An application is made to harmonic oscillators targets.

► In this paper, we calculate the mean value of the resolvent of the Schrodinger equation to derive a formal expression of the neutron width Γn which shows that the neutron width depends on the initial and intermediate states of the lattice after formation of the compound nucleus.
► An application is made to harmonic oscillator targets.