Environmental neutrons as seen by a germanium gamma-ray spectrometer

https://doi.org/10.1016/0168-9002(92)90918-TGet rights and content

Abstract

Using a 252Cf neutron source we have calibrated the response of Ge detectors to fast neutrons and deduced the expression for determination of the flux of fast environmental neutrons based on the intensity of the spectral structure at 691.3 keV. We also suggest an approximate expression for estimation of the flux of environmental thermal neutrons from the intensity of the 139.9 keV line.

References (8)

  • R.M. Lindstorm, D.J. Lindstrom, L.A. Slaback and J.K. Langland, private...
  • R.A.I. Bell

    Austral. Nat. Univ. Rep. ANU-P/606

    (1974)
    G.F. Knoll

    Radiation Detection and Measurement

  • P.H. Stelson et al.

    Nucl. Instr. and Meth.

    (1972)
  • A. Kukoč et al.
There are more references available in the full text version of this article.

Cited by (44)

  • Presence of neutrons in the low-level background environment estimated by the analysis of the 595.8 keV gamma peak

    2017, Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research, Section A: Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors and Associated Equipment
    Citation Excerpt :

    In the ground level laboratory, neutrons are mainly produced by muon capture in a lead shield of the gamma-ray spectroscopy systems [13]. There are a number of studies about the neutron induced activity during gamma spectroscopy measurements [8,13–17]. All of those analyses show that gamma peaks following neutron capture and scattering reactions with the detector itself (and surrounding materials) can give measurable contribution to the background spectra.

  • Modeling of neutron spectrum in the gamma spectroscopy measurements with Ge-detectors

    2016, Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research, Section A: Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors and Associated Equipment
  • Estimation method of planetary fast neutron flux by a Ge gamma-ray spectrometer

    2016, Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research, Section A: Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors and Associated Equipment
    Citation Excerpt :

    Thus, gamma rays induced by the planetary neutrons have to be corrected by those intensity in order to estimate concentration of element on the planet [1]. Many authors have studied the sawtooth peak in an HPGe detector on the Earth or in underground environments [12–18]. Especially, Siiskonen and Toivonen modeled the function of sawtooth peak and reported the neutron evaporation temperature based on the analysis of environmental monitoring gamma spectra [17].

  • The Dortmund Low Background Facility - Low-background gamma ray spectrometry with an artificial overburden

    2016, Applied Radiation and Isotopes
    Citation Excerpt :

    Using these data, the thermal neutron flux at the location of the HPGe detector is estimated to be about (9.8±0.9)×10−5 cm−2 s−1 during the spectrum acquisition period. This value is quite low compared to the value of approximately 3×10−3 cm−2 s−1 for a conventional shielding without a neutron moderator given in Škoro et al. (1992) and proves the effectiveness of the neutron shielding. Several peaks in the background spectrum are associated to the aforementioned activation by cosmic ray particles in Section 2.2.3.

View all citing articles on Scopus
View full text