Potential uses of ERL-based γ-ray sources

We expand upon the idea of using γ-rays for nuclear photofission of ²³⁸U at the giant dipole resonance to generate rare neutron-reach nuclei. The SPIRAL II project proposes the employment of 10-20-MeV Bremsstrahlung γ-rays generated by a 45-MeV electron beam /http://ganinfo.in2p3.fr/research/developments/spiral2/index.html/. In this paper, we explore the possibility of using a Compton γ-ray source for such a process. The Collider Accelerator Department at Brookhaven National Laboratory is developing high-current (up to 1 A), high-brightness (down to 1-mm · mrad normalized emittance), and high-energy energy-recovery linacs (up to 20-GeV electron beam energy for eRHIC). These electron beams are perfectly suited for generating photon beams with tremendous average power, approaching the megawatt level. The range of photon's energy extends from subelectronvolts from free-electron lasers to 10 GeV from the Compton process. In this paper, we focus on a γ-ray source for producing rare isotopes.