Electron energy loss in radiation detection
EMSL Project ID
16319
Abstract
This project will develop the capability at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) to measure processes by which high energy electrons lose energy in solids and how that lost energy is converted into information carriers in gamma radiation detection materials. These measurements will validate key aspects of the three companion theoretical efforts to model the physical effects that are significant and/or dominant contributors to spectral peak broadening in both semiconductor and scintillation-based gamma-ray detectors. A key process in the energy cascade that underlies the operation of radiation detectors is conversion of plasmons into electron-hole pairs and heat, where plasmons are a collective motion of the valence electrons in a solid. A fast electron, produced for example by a photo-electric event or Compton scattering of a gamma-ray, has 75-90% of its energy pass through plasmons in the energy cascade down to heat and signal. However, there appear to be no measurements of the average and variance of the number of electron-hole pairs produced by plasmon decay in solids. This project will measure the distribution of electron-hole pairs produced by plasmon decay. These results will greatly improve understanding of plasmon decay and the material properties that influence it, which will provide important insights into the material properties required for high resolution gamma ray detectors.
Project Details
Project type
Exploratory Research
Start Date
2005-10-01
End Date
2006-11-15
Status
Closed
Released Data Link
Team
Principal Investigator
Team Members
Related Publications
"Determination of Inelastic Mean Free Path and Energy-Loss Function by Electron Energy-Loss Spectroscopy in TEM: A Model Study Using Si and Ge." By Wang CM, and BD Cannon. Presented by Chongmin Wang at MRS, Boston, MA on November 30, 2006. PNNL-SA-53067.
"Determination of Inelastic Mean Free Path by Electron Energy-Loss Spectroscopy in TEM: A Model Study Using Si and Ge." By Wang CM, and BD Cannon in Proceedings of Materials Research Society meeting, 2006. PNNL-SA-54267