Practical Gamma-ray Spectrometry

Gordon Gilmore, PhD, worked at the Universities Research Reactor (owned by Manchester and Liverpool Universities and now decommissioned) using gamma spectrometry, originally as an adjunct to chemical analysis, at a time when detectors and instrumentation were being developed from their relatively primitive beginnings to their modern sophisticated forms. That 25 years of experience, along with the late John Hemingway, led to the publication of the first edition of this work, with the intention of sharing a deep understanding of gamma spectrometry with the expanding population of gamma spectrometrists within universities and many establishments where radioactivity is used or studied. After his retirement from the University, as a director of Nuclear Training Services Ltd., he was called upon to lecture, develop methods and advise on setting up gamma spectrometry facilities. He is an Honorary Professor at the University of Liverpool. David Joss, PhD, is Professor of Physics at the University of Liverpool, UK, where he teaches undergraduate and postgraduate courses in nuclear physics. His research focuses on understanding the structure of the atomic nucleus using gamma-ray spectroscopy with large spectrometer arrays. He has published over 200 research articles from his research. He is a Fellow in the Institute of Physics and a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.

• Preface to the Third Edition xixPreface to the Second Edition xxiPreface to the First Edition xxiiiInternet Resources Within the Book xxvAbout the Website xxvii1 Radioactive Decay and the Origin of Gamma and X-Radiation 12 Interactions of Gamma Radiation with Matter 333 Semiconductor Detectors for Gamma-Ray Spectrometry 524 Electronics for Gamma-Ray Spectrometry 795 Statistics of Counting 1286 Resolution: Origins and Control 1677 Spectrometer Calibration 1828 True Coincidence Summing 2149 Computer Analysis of Gamma-Ray Spectra 23610 Scintillation Spectrometry 26511 Low Count-Rate Systems 28612 High Count-Rate Systems 32113 Ensuring Quality in Gamma-Ray Spectrometry 34114 Gamma Spectrometry of Naturally Occurring Radioactive Materials (NORM) 36415 Applications 38216 Choosing and Setting Up a Detector, and Checking Its Specifications 41017 Troubleshooting 434Appendix A Sources of Information 449Appendix B Gamma- and X-Ray Standards for Detector Calibration 455Appendix C X-Rays Routinely Found in Gamma Spectra 465Appendix D Gamma-Ray Energies in the Detector Background and the Environment 467Appendix E Chemical Names, Symbols and Relative Atomic Masses of the Elements 471Glossary 479Index 497