Rejection of the internal α background in LaBr3:(Ce) detectors by using a wavelet-based pulse-shape discrimination method
LaBr3:(Ce) exhibits the best energy resolution among scintillation γ-ray detectors. The excellent energy resolution of this detector has made it suitable for many radiation detection applications such as environmental monitoring, medical imaging, nuclear security, nuclear physics experiments, etc. H...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2022-06-01
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| Series: | Journal of King Saud University: Science |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1018364722001069 |
| _version_ | 1818551934056923136 |
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| author | Thamer Alharbi |
| author_facet | Thamer Alharbi |
| author_sort | Thamer Alharbi |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | LaBr3:(Ce) exhibits the best energy resolution among scintillation γ-ray detectors. The excellent energy resolution of this detector has made it suitable for many radiation detection applications such as environmental monitoring, medical imaging, nuclear security, nuclear physics experiments, etc. However, LaBr3:(Ce) crystal endures from internal radioactivity which produces a considerable background in the measurements. The problem of internal radiation is particularly acute with large size detectors, measuring low-intensity γ-rays. A considerable part of the internal radiation comes from the α-decay of 227Ac and its daughters which are present as an impurity in the detector’s crystal. Unfortunately, due to the very similar chemical properties of Actinium and Lanthanum, it is very difficult to remove the 227Ac impurity by using purification processes, and therefore, the α-background is present in all the commercial crystals. A practical approach for the reduction of this problem is to identify the α-events through an electronic analysis of the shape of output pulses of the detector and reject them. In the past, several digital pulse-shape discrimination (PSD) methods have been proposed to suppress the internal α background in LaBr3:(Ce) detectors. These methods exploit the small difference in the shape of scintillation pulses from α- and γ-ray interactions. The PSD methods have demonstrated some degree of success, which are limited to only a partial rejection of the α-background while further reduction of the α background is highly desirable for low-background γ-ray measurements. In this work, a novel digital PSD method that significantly improves the rejection of the internal α background was developed. The PSD method is based on the wavelet transform of the scintillation pulses, leading to an almost complete rejection of the α background. This method is very useful for low-level radiation measurements with LaBr3:(Ce) detectors involving high-energy γ rays. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-12T09:06:29Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-4ede67523f4e431ea4f0905ff1bc8f00 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1018-3647 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-12T09:06:29Z |
| publishDate | 2022-06-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of King Saud University: Science |
| spelling | doaj.art-4ede67523f4e431ea4f0905ff1bc8f002022-12-22T00:29:40ZengElsevierJournal of King Saud University: Science1018-36472022-06-01344101925Rejection of the internal α background in LaBr3:(Ce) detectors by using a wavelet-based pulse-shape discrimination methodThamer Alharbi0Department of Physics, College of Science in Zulfi, Majmaah University, Majmaah 11932, Saudi ArabiaLaBr3:(Ce) exhibits the best energy resolution among scintillation γ-ray detectors. The excellent energy resolution of this detector has made it suitable for many radiation detection applications such as environmental monitoring, medical imaging, nuclear security, nuclear physics experiments, etc. However, LaBr3:(Ce) crystal endures from internal radioactivity which produces a considerable background in the measurements. The problem of internal radiation is particularly acute with large size detectors, measuring low-intensity γ-rays. A considerable part of the internal radiation comes from the α-decay of 227Ac and its daughters which are present as an impurity in the detector’s crystal. Unfortunately, due to the very similar chemical properties of Actinium and Lanthanum, it is very difficult to remove the 227Ac impurity by using purification processes, and therefore, the α-background is present in all the commercial crystals. A practical approach for the reduction of this problem is to identify the α-events through an electronic analysis of the shape of output pulses of the detector and reject them. In the past, several digital pulse-shape discrimination (PSD) methods have been proposed to suppress the internal α background in LaBr3:(Ce) detectors. These methods exploit the small difference in the shape of scintillation pulses from α- and γ-ray interactions. The PSD methods have demonstrated some degree of success, which are limited to only a partial rejection of the α-background while further reduction of the α background is highly desirable for low-background γ-ray measurements. In this work, a novel digital PSD method that significantly improves the rejection of the internal α background was developed. The PSD method is based on the wavelet transform of the scintillation pulses, leading to an almost complete rejection of the α background. This method is very useful for low-level radiation measurements with LaBr3:(Ce) detectors involving high-energy γ rays.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1018364722001069LaBr3:(Ce)Pulse-shape discriminationγ-Ray spectroscopyInternal radiation |
| spellingShingle | Thamer Alharbi Rejection of the internal α background in LaBr3:(Ce) detectors by using a wavelet-based pulse-shape discrimination method Journal of King Saud University: Science LaBr3:(Ce) Pulse-shape discrimination γ-Ray spectroscopy Internal radiation |
| title | Rejection of the internal α background in LaBr3:(Ce) detectors by using a wavelet-based pulse-shape discrimination method |
| title_full | Rejection of the internal α background in LaBr3:(Ce) detectors by using a wavelet-based pulse-shape discrimination method |
| title_fullStr | Rejection of the internal α background in LaBr3:(Ce) detectors by using a wavelet-based pulse-shape discrimination method |
| title_full_unstemmed | Rejection of the internal α background in LaBr3:(Ce) detectors by using a wavelet-based pulse-shape discrimination method |
| title_short | Rejection of the internal α background in LaBr3:(Ce) detectors by using a wavelet-based pulse-shape discrimination method |
| title_sort | rejection of the internal α background in labr3 ce detectors by using a wavelet based pulse shape discrimination method |
| topic | LaBr3:(Ce) Pulse-shape discrimination γ-Ray spectroscopy Internal radiation |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1018364722001069 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT thameralharbi rejectionoftheinternalabackgroundinlabr3cedetectorsbyusingawaveletbasedpulseshapediscriminationmethod |