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Steinetz and colleagues report that exposing highly deuterated materials to a low-energy photon beam of nominally 2 MeV resulted in nuclear activity of the parent metals hafnium and erbium and of a molybdenum witness material mixed with the reactants. Gamma spectral analysis showed that nuclear processes had occurred, as shown by unique gamma signatures. Posttest gamma spectra showed evidence of radioisotopes of erbium and of molybdenum and, by beta decay, technetium. In contrast, when the hydrogenated or non-gas-loaded erbium or hafnium materials were exposed to the gamma flux, the spectra revealed no new isotopes. Track detectors showed evidence of fast neutrons with energies between 1.4 and 2.5 MeV, and the authors state that further study is required to determine the mechanism causing the nuclear activity.

Experimental Observations of Nuclear Activity in Deuterated Materials Subjected to a Low-Energy Photon Beam