HETC radiation transport code development for cosmic ray shielding applications in space

Area of Science:

• Space radiation physics
• Computational physics
• Nuclear engineering

Background:

• Accurate simulation of space radiation is crucial for designing effective shielding for future space missions.
• Galactic cosmic rays (GCRs) pose a significant radiation hazard, necessitating detailed transport modeling.
• Existing radiation transport codes often lack comprehensive capabilities for energetic heavy ions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To extend the High Energy Transport Code (HETC) for three-dimensional analyses of space radiation shielding scenarios.
• To incorporate the transport of energetic heavy ions and their nuclear reaction products.
• To validate the modified code against experimental data for realistic space mission applications.

Main Methods:

• Modification of the Monte Carlo radiation transport code HETC.
• Development and incorporation of an event generator for nuclear interaction data.
• Prediction of interaction product yields, angles, and energies using nuclear models and Monte Carlo techniques.
• Testing and validation of the extended code using laboratory beam data for heavy ion interactions in thick targets.

Main Results:

• The HETC code has been successfully modified to include energetic heavy ion transport.
• An event generator for nuclear interactions has been developed and integrated into the code.
• Initial testing shows promising results when comparing code predictions with laboratory beam data for heavy ion interactions in thick targets.

Conclusions:

• The extended HETC code is capable of transporting energetic heavy ions and their reaction products through thick shielding.
• The code modifications and validation efforts are essential for accurate 3D analyses of space radiation shielding.
• Further validation and refinement will enhance the reliability of the code for future space mission design.