Subcriticality

{
  "id": "MLC-T-NUC-000496",
  "term": "Subcriticality",
  "field": "Nuclear energy and radiation",
  "definition": "The condition of a nuclear reactor system, in which nuclear fuel no longer sustains a fission chain reaction (that is, the reaction fails to initiate its own repetition, as it would in a reactor's normal operating condition). A reactor becomes subcritical when its fission events fail to release a sufficient number of neutrons to sustain an ongoing series of reactions, possibly as a result of increased neutron leakage or poisons.",
  "references": [
    "NRC Glossary"
  ],
  "url": "https://mlchart.com/terminology/nuclear/subcriticality/"
}