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INL reports findings on unusual quantum behavior of plutonium
Scientists at Idaho National Laboratory have discovered that plutonium hexaboride (PuB6) displays a type of unusual quantum property called a topological Kondo insulating state. Materials with this property are neither typical electricity conductors nor regular insulators. Rather, they have exterior surfaces that strongly conduct electricity and interiors that block electricity.
J. R. Thomas, Jr., Joseph T. Adams
Nuclear Technology | Volume 107 | Number 2 | August 1994 | Pages 236-240
Technical Note | Reactor Operation | doi.org/10.13182/NT94-A34990
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A neural network was trained with data for the frequency response function between in-core neutron noise and core-exit thermocouple noise in a pressurized water reactor, with the moderator temperature coefficient (MTC) as target. The trained network was subsequently used to predict the MTC at other points in the same fuel cycle. Results support use of the method for operating pressurized water reactors provided noise data can be accumulated for several fuel cycles to provide a training base.