TY - JOUR
T1 - EJ-309 pulse shape discrimination performance with a high gamma-ray-to-neutron ratio and low threshold
AU - Kaplan, A. C.
AU - Flaska, M.
AU - Enqvist, A.
AU - Dolan, J. L.
AU - Pozzi, S. A.
N1 - Funding Information:
This research was performed under the Nuclear Forensics Graduate Fellowship Program , which is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Domestic Nuclear Detection Office and the U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Threat Reduction Agency. This work was also funded under the Department of Energy, Stewardship Science Academic Alliances , Award # DE-FG52-10NA29654
PY - 2013
Y1 - 2013
N2 - Measuring neutrons in the presence of high gamma-ray fluence is a challenge with multi-particle detectors. Organic liquid scintillators such as the EJ-309 are capable of accurate pulse-shape discrimination (PSD) but the chance for particle misclassification is not negligible for some applications. By varying the distance from an EJ-309 scintillator to a strong-gamma-ray source and keeping a weak-neutron source at a fixed position, various gamma-to-neutron ratios can be measured and PSD performance can be quantified. Comparing neutron pulse-height distributions allows for pulse-height specific PSD evaluation, and quantification and visualization of deviation from 252Cf alone. Even with the addition of the misclassified gamma-rays, the PSD is effective in separating particles so that neutron count rate can be predicted with less than 10% error up to a gamma-to-neutron ratio of almost 650. For applications which can afford a reduction in neutron detection efficiency, PSD can be sufficiently effective in discriminating particles to measure a weak neutron source in a high gamma-ray background.
AB - Measuring neutrons in the presence of high gamma-ray fluence is a challenge with multi-particle detectors. Organic liquid scintillators such as the EJ-309 are capable of accurate pulse-shape discrimination (PSD) but the chance for particle misclassification is not negligible for some applications. By varying the distance from an EJ-309 scintillator to a strong-gamma-ray source and keeping a weak-neutron source at a fixed position, various gamma-to-neutron ratios can be measured and PSD performance can be quantified. Comparing neutron pulse-height distributions allows for pulse-height specific PSD evaluation, and quantification and visualization of deviation from 252Cf alone. Even with the addition of the misclassified gamma-rays, the PSD is effective in separating particles so that neutron count rate can be predicted with less than 10% error up to a gamma-to-neutron ratio of almost 650. For applications which can afford a reduction in neutron detection efficiency, PSD can be sufficiently effective in discriminating particles to measure a weak neutron source in a high gamma-ray background.
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U2 - 10.1016/j.nima.2013.07.081
DO - 10.1016/j.nima.2013.07.081
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:84883181163
SN - 0168-9002
VL - 729
SP - 463
EP - 468
JO - Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research, Section A: Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors and Associated Equipment
JF - Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research, Section A: Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors and Associated Equipment
ER -