A mechanical analog in nonlinear nuclear reactor stability analysis

A sufficient condition for the asymptotic stability of nuclear reactors in terms of the equilibrium power level and arbitrary feedback parameters is obtained through the use of a mechanical analog. The stability criterion (related to the amplitude of oscillations of the autonomous system and shown to contain no delayed neutron contribution) differs in this respect from previous work and provides further insight into the role of delayed neutrons in nonlinear system stability.<
>