Nuclear Studies of a Uranium Metal-Metal Excimer Nuclear Laser/Reactor with Nuclear Light Bulb Design

摘要

Uranium metal may have the potential of forming a metal excimer with zinc, cadmium or mercury. Excimers are the most efficient electronic transition lasers known, and metal excimers have spectra in the visible wavelength regions. Metal excimers of interest are InZn (5308, 5626 augstroms), InCd (5544, 5760 augstroms), InHg (5226 augstroms), TIZn (4680, 6200 augstroms), TlCd (4872, 6400 A), and TlHg (4590, 6560 augstroms). A laser is proposed where uranium is both the pumping source, via fission fragments, and the lasant, via excimer formation (UZn, UCd, UHg) with output in the visible wavelengths. The metal excimers mentioned have not yet been made to lase. In this initial study, reactor physics calculations with the computer code ANISN, a multi-geometrym, one-dimensional Boltzmann neutron transport code, were made to examine different reactor configurations. The uranium is required to be in a vapor state, and therefore reactor design is based heavily on the Nuclear Light Bulb Engine. Dependent upon the density requirements (of uranium and mercury, for example) for transmitting laser light, the reactor options include lasers that are self-critical to lasers that require criticality drivers.