Radioactivity in a bucket

IF 0.6 4区教育学 Q4 EDUCATION, SCIENTIFIC DISCIPLINES

European Journal of Physics Pub Date : 2023-10-13 DOI:10.1088/1361-6404/ad0346

Luis Peralta

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Abstract In Radiation Physics classes, point sources are typically used, for which it is relatively easy to describe the signal obtained by a radiation detector, such as the NaI(Tl) scintillation detector. The use of large extended radiation sources is generally avoided due to the mathematical complexity that their description may involve. However, the use of Monte Carlo simulation methods allows this limitation to be overcome. Potassium chloride, containing the 40K isotope, is an ideal candidate for carrying out this type of experiment. The source activity is obtained through the detection of the 1460.8 keV gamma- photon emitted in the 40K decay. In the first experiment, a cylindrical container is used, placing the NaI(Tl) detector in its center and filling the remaining space with potassium chloride. In a second, more complex case, a large radioactive source consisting of a container filled with a mixture of sand and potassium chloride, with the NaI(Tl) detector placed in the center of the mixture, is used. In this case, the mass of potassium chloride is approximately 1/5 of the sand mass. In both experiments, the detection efficiency is obtained by Monte Carlo simulation. A careful analysis of the experimental data allows to obtain a good agreement between the measured and calculated value of the activity.

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桶中的放射性

在辐射物理课程中，点源通常被使用，因为它相对容易描述由辐射探测器(如NaI(Tl)闪烁探测器)获得的信号。由于其描述可能涉及的数学复杂性，通常避免使用大型扩展辐射源。然而，使用蒙特卡罗模拟方法可以克服这一限制。含有40K同位素的氯化钾是进行这类实验的理想候选者。通过探测在40K衰变中发射的1460.8 keV伽马光子，获得了源活度。在第一个实验中，使用一个圆柱形容器，将NaI(Tl)探测器放置在其中心，并用氯化钾填充剩余空间。在第二种更复杂的情况下，使用一个由装满沙子和氯化钾混合物的容器组成的大型放射源，将NaI(Tl)探测器放置在混合物的中心。在这种情况下，氯化钾的质量大约是沙子质量的1/5。在这两个实验中，检测效率都是通过蒙特卡罗模拟得到的。对实验数据的仔细分析可以使活度的测量值和计算值很好地吻合。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

European Journal of Physics 物理-物理：综合

CiteScore

1.70

自引率

28.60%

发文量

128

审稿时长

3-8 weeks

期刊介绍： European Journal of Physics is a journal of the European Physical Society and its primary mission is to assist in maintaining and improving the standard of taught physics in universities and other institutes of higher education. Authors submitting articles must indicate the usefulness of their material to physics education and make clear the level of readership (undergraduate or graduate) for which the article is intended. Submissions that omit this information or which, in the publisher''s opinion, do not contribute to the above mission will not be considered for publication. To this end, we welcome articles that provide original insights and aim to enhance learning in one or more areas of physics. They should normally include at least one of the following: Explanations of how contemporary research can inform the understanding of physics at university level: for example, a survey of a research field at a level accessible to students, explaining how it illustrates some general principles. Original insights into the derivation of results. These should be of some general interest, consisting of more than corrections to textbooks. Descriptions of novel laboratory exercises illustrating new techniques of general interest. Those based on relatively inexpensive equipment are especially welcome. Articles of a scholarly or reflective nature that are aimed to be of interest to, and at a level appropriate for, physics students or recent graduates. Descriptions of successful and original student projects, experimental, theoretical or computational. Discussions of the history, philosophy and epistemology of physics, at a level accessible to physics students and teachers. Reports of new developments in physics curricula and the techniques for teaching physics. Physics Education Research reports: articles that provide original experimental and/or theoretical research contributions that directly relate to the teaching and learning of university-level physics.