Cross section measurement of the 159Tb(n, γ)Tb160 nuclear reaction

• The 159Tb(n, γ)Tb160 cross-section was measured with the activation technique.
• These data are new in the 4–7 MeV energy range.
• Data are required in technology development projects for activation studies.
• The theoretical evaluation was performed with the TALYS-1.2 code.
• These data could be used for an (n,γn,γ) systematics testing.

The cross section of the 159Tb(n, γ)Tb160 reaction was measured in four mono-energetic neutron fields of energy 3.7, 4.3, 5.4, and 6.85 MeV, respectively, with the activation technique applied to metal discs of natural composition. To ensure an acceptable precision of the results all major sources of uncertainties were taken into account. Calculations of detector efficiency, incident neutron spectrum and correction factors were performed with the Monte Carlo code (MCNPX), whereas theoretical excitation functions were calculated with the TALYS-1.2 code and compared to the experimental cross section values. This paper presents both measurements and calculation leading to the cross section values.