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Experimental and Monte Carlo studies on the response of CR-39 detectors to Am-Be neutron spectrum
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M.R. Deevband   , P. Abdolmaleki , M.R. Kardan , H.R. Khosravi , M. Taheri , F. Nazeri , N. Ahmadi |
| , parviz@modares.ac.ir |
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Abstract: (11368 Views) |
| Background: The Poly-Allyl Diglycol Carbonate
(PADC) detector is of particular interest for
development of a fast neutron dosimeter. Fast
neutrons interact with the constituents of the CR-39
detector and produce H, C and O recoils, as well as
(n, α) reaction. These neutron- induced charged
particles contribute towards the response of CR-39
detectors. Material and Methods: Electrochemical
etching was used to enlarge track diameter which
was made by low energy recoil protons. Before
electrochemical etching, a chemical etching was
performed for 1 hour. The responses were also
calculated by Monte Carlo simulations, using MCNPX
code in different energy bins considering H, C and O
recoils. The total registered efficiency and partial
contributions of the efficiency, due to interactions
with each constituent of CR-39, were calculated.
Results: The optimized condition of etchant was
obtained to be 6N KOH 15kV.cm-1, and 6 hours
etching time. The obtained results show that track
efficiency of CR-39 was a function of incident neutron
energy. The tracks caused by O and C recoil nuclei
were negligible for neutron energies lower than 1
MeV. At neutron energies lower than 1 MeV, only
recoil protons would have sufficient energy to leave
visible tracks. But, O and C recoils had important
contributions in overall response of PADC at neutron
energies of few MeV. Conclusion: The efficiency of a
CR-39 based dosemeter could be calculated by
MCNPX code and the results were in a good agreement
with experimental results in energy range of
241Am – Be bare source and 241Am-Be was softened
with a spherical polyethylene moderator of radius of
20 cm. Iran. J. Radiat. Res., 2011 9(2): 95-102 |
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| Keywords: Neutron dosemetry, electrochemical etching, MCNPX, simulation |
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Full-Text [PDF 493 kb]
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Type of Study: Original Research |
Subject:
Radiation Biology
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