High counting-rate data acquisition system for the applications of PGNAA

Abstract

The prompt γ-ray neutron activation analysis (referred PGNAA) technology is a use of the strong penetrating power of neutron and γ-ray, which can get the whole information of the elements inside a thick material. Therefore, the PGNAA technology has become the best choice to meet the needs of detecting the composition of industrial materials. This paper presents a data acquisition scheme for the physical targets of PGNAA, which has a high pass rate, high SNR and can analyze and process a large number of pulses which the detector outputs. This system is designed to rapidly analyze the composition and content of the industrial materials in real-time. Since we have to dynamically analyze the moving materials, the expected time for a measurement can not exceed 120s, The average counting rate is expected to reach more than 500kc/s.