Isomer ratios and cross sections for the isomeric pair 122mSb and 122gSb in the 123Sb(n,2n) reaction

Abstract Cross-sections and their isomeric ratios σ m /σ g in the energy range of 13–15 MeV for isomeric pair 122m Sb and 122g Sb produced by the 123 Sb(n,2n) reaction have been measured by activation and off-line γ-ray spectrometric technique using the K-400 Neutron Generator at the Chinese Academy of Engineering Physics (CAEP). Specifically, the versatile stacked foil irradiation technique and a high resolution HPGe detector were employed. The 3 H( d , n ) 4 He reaction was used to produce the neutron beam. Partial cross sections σ m and σ g were derived from the absolute cross section of the metastable state and residual nuclear decay analysis. The 123 Sb(n,2 n) 122m,g Sb reaction excitation functions and their isomeric cross section ratios were numerically calculated with TALYS-1.8 code with different level density options. Results are discussed and compared with corresponding literature data.