Evaluation of Neutron-induced Cross Sections and their Related Covariances with Physical Constraints

International audienceNuclear data, along with numerical methods and the associated calculation schemes, continue to play a key role in reactor design, reactor core operating parameters calculations, fuel cycle management and criticality safety calculations. Due to the intensive use of Monte-Carlo calculations reducing numerical biases, the final accuracy of neutronic calculations increasingly depends on the quality of nuclear data used. This paper gives a broad picture of all ingredients treated by nuclear data evaluators during their analyses. After giving an introduction to nuclear data evaluation, we present implications of using the Bayesian inference to obtain evaluated cross sections and related uncertainties. In particular, a focus is made on systematic uncertainties appearing in the analysis of differential measurements as well as advantages and drawbacks one may encounter by analyzing integral experiments.The evaluation work is in general done independently in the resonance and in the continuum energy ranges giving rise to inconsistencies in evaluated files. For future evaluations on the whole energy range, we call attention to two innovative methods used to analyze several nuclear reaction models and impose constraints. Finally, we discuss suggestions for possible improvements in the evaluation process to master the quantification of uncertainties. These are associated with experiments (microscopic and integral), nuclear reaction theories and the Bayesian inference