Measurement of the /sup 252/Cf spontaneous fission neutron spectrum

The neutron energy spectrum of /sup 252/Cf spontaneous fission was measured by the time-of-flight method with two neutron detectors--a /sup 6/LiI(Eu) crystal and a fast ionization chamber with /sup 235/U layers. The influence of scattered neutrons and fission neutron emission time on the spectrum shape was studied. In the range from 10 keV to 7 MeV, the neutron energy spectrum is satisfactorily described by a Maxwellian distribution within the experimental errors with T = 1.41 +- 0.03 MeV. 4 figures.