Hardness ratios of different neutron spectra

Extensive data have been gathered in the past on the response of different detectors, based on the registration of neutron-induced fissions in bismuth, gold, tantalum and thorium by the spark-replica counter and the thin film breakdown counter. These detectors make it possible to exploit the excellent characteristics of the fission reactions for the measurements of high-energy neutrons. Most of the investigations have been carried out at the quasi-monoenergetic neutron beam facility at The Svedberg Laboratory-TSL of the Uppsala University in cooperation with the Khlopin Radium Institute (KRI). The responses of different fission detectors in the neutron energy range 35-180 MeV have been evaluated: a region where the predictive power of available nuclear reaction models and codes is not reliable yet. For neutron energy >200 MeV, the fission-detector responses have been derived from the data of the proton fission cross sections. By using the ratio of the responses of these detectors, a simple and accurate way to evaluate the spectrum hardness can be obtained, thus providing a tool to obtain spectral information needed for neutron dosimetry without the need to know the entire spectrum. Extensive data have been already obtained for the high-energy neutron spectrum from the CERN concrete facility. In the present paper, the measured values of the response ratios for different fissile detectors exposed at the CERN facility are compared with those calculated for the spectra from the same facility and from different altitudes in the atmosphere, respectively.