Nondestructive assay methods that rely on measurement of correlated gamma r
ays from fission have been proposed as a means to determine the mass of fis
sile materials. Sensitivity studies for such measurements will require know
ledge of the multiplicity of prompt gamma rays from fission; however, a ver
y limited number of multiplicity distributions have been measured. A method
is proposed to estimate the average number of gamma rays from any fission
process by using the correlation of neutron and gamma emission in fission.
Using this method, models for the total prompt gamma ray energy from fissio
n adequately reproduce the measured value for thermal neutron induced fissi
on of U-233. Likewise, the average energy of prompt gamma rays from fission
has been adequately estimated using a simple linear model. Additionally, a
method to estimate the multiplicity distribution of prompt gamma rays from
fission is proposed based on a measured distribution for Cf-252. These met
hods are only approximate at best and should only be used for sensitivity s
tudies. Measurements of the multiplicity distribution of prompt gamma rays
from fission should be performed to determine the adequacy of the models pr
oposed in this article. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd.