0000000000261617
AUTHOR
C. Roldán García
Characterization of alpha sources prepared by direct evaporation using Rutherford backscattering spectrometry
Abstract Standardization of solutions containing alpha emitting nuclides by direct evaporation onto metal supports is a widely used technique due to its simplicity in providing good quantitative results. In order to avoid inhomogeneity in the deposition surface, polished stainless steel disks and a spreading agent are generally used. These sources are usually measured by alpha spectrometry using passivated implanted silicon detectors. The resolution of the source is a measure of the thickness and homogeneity of the evaporated layer. Rutherford backscattering of He+ and H+ was here used to measure directly this thickness and homogeneity. The results were in agreement with semiconductor detec…
The use of a European coinage alloy to compare the detection limits of mobile XRF systems. A feasibility study
The investigation of archaeological and historical materials makes use of techniques that, though borrowed from other fields of research and industrial production, frequently have to be 're-invented' because of peculiar characteristics of the analysed objects. Artistic relevance, limited movability, compositional and structural heterogeneity radically change the experimental approach and often require ad hoc designed equipment. These considerations also apply to x-ray fluorescence, especially regarding mobile systems. The extensive development and use of mobile spectrometers has produced an extremely diversified context and created the need for common criteria to evaluate their performances…
Semipermeable membrane to retain platinum atoms in the electrodeposition process of alpha spectrometry sources
Abstract In earlier work alpha sources electrodeposited on stainless steel backings were analyzed by X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS) finding that during the electrodeposition process large quantities of platinum from the anode were deposited on the cathode surface jointly with the actinides. In the present work, a method to retain platinum atoms using an electrodeposition cell with a semipermeable membrane located between anode and cathode is proposed and tested. The XRF and RBS of alpha sources electrodeposited using this method show that there is less platinum on the stainless steel backing, thereby improving the quality of sources to be measured …
Characterization of alpha sources by Rutherford backscattering spectrometry
Radioactive sources for alpha spectrometry are usually prepared by electrodeposition onto stainless steel backings (and sometimes heated). In earlier work, using the conventional method with passivated implanted planar silicon detectors for the measurements, several sources had been characterized in terms of various parameters by fitting the data of each spectrum to a certain mathematical function. In the present work, the Rutherford Backscattering Spectrometry (RBS) technique with a 1.6 MeV He+ beam was used to study the influence of those factors on the surface distribution and depth profiles of the thin radionuclide layers. Simulations of the measurements using the RUMP computer code wer…
Ion beam analysis and alpha spectrometry of sources electrodeposited on several backings
Abstract Alpha sources of several activities were prepared by electrodeposition of natural uranium onto four different backings: stainless steel, Ni, Mo and Ti. The influence of the activity, the type of backing, and the process of heating the source on the energy resolution of the spectra were investigated using alpha spectrometry and Rutherford Backscattering Spectrometry (RBS) techniques. Diffusion profiles of the radioactive deposits in the backings were obtained from RBS and related to the results using alpha spectrometry
Application of atomic and nuclear techniques to the study of inhomogeneities in electrodeposited α-particle sources
Three α-particle sources made by different methods of electrodeposition were analysed using α-particle spectrometry, Rutherford backscattering (RBS), and atomic force microscopy (AFM) on several surface zones. The thickness and homogeneity of these sources was studied using RBS, and the results were analysed jointly with those obtained with α-particle spectrometry and AFM techniques. The comparison of the electrodeposition methods showed that the most homogeneous electrodeposited zones corresponded to the source made with a stirring cathode.