Measurement of proton-induced reaction cross sections on natural neodymium up to 100 MeV

We measured the production cross sections of 139g,141 Ce, 142g Pr, 138,139m,140,147 Nd and 143,144,146,148m,148g,149 Pm from nat Nd(p,x) reactions up to 100 MeV using the stacked-foil activation method. The proton linear accelerator at the Korea Multi-purpose Accelerator Complex (KOMAC) supplied proton beams with energies up to 100 MeV. We carried out two beam irradiations using 69 MeV and 100 MeV to obtain cross section data over a wide energy range. The 27 Al(p,x) 24 Na monitor reaction recommended by the IAEA was used to determine the proton beam intensity. The activity of the irradiated natural neodymium foils was measured using a high-purity germanium (HPGe) detector, which was calibrated for both energy and efficiency. The measured cross sections were compared with existing experimental data as well as with the TENDL-2023 nuclear data library. The production cross sections of radionuclides produced from the nat Nd(p,x) reactions at proton energies above 65 MeV were measured for the first time in this study.