The fission systematics of (15.9 MeV/u) Au ions in polymer CR-39

It has been demonstrated that high-energy heavy ions undergo fission while propagating in dielectric solids. Since these materials act as particle detectors because of their ability to retain primary ionization damage that can be fixed and enlarged with chemical etching, therefore, in principle, a complete kinematical analysis of fission events is possible. The crucial point in this regard is the availability of a well-calibrated range-energy relation, which is necessary for mass identification. We have developed an analytical method to convert the geometrical parameters of fission fragment tracks into physical parameters using an equation that expresses velocity as a polynomial of mass and range. A set of nine different polynomials was used to represent small regions of mass and range in order to improve accuracy. In the case of (15.9 MeV/u) Au ions incident normally on CR-39, we have found about 200 events which could be categorized as in-flight fission of Au ions inside the body of the detector. Mass distributions and cross sections of fission events have been calculated.     

Radon surveys in Brazil using CR-39

In this work results of two radon daughters survey in Brazil are presented and discussed. Some methodological problems concerning the first survey are pointed out which were corrected for the second survey in order to make a realistic long-term measurement of radon decay products in the air. The technique employed in both surveys was the alpha-spectroscopy using CR-39. The reliability of this technique as well as the results of the second survey are discussed, which indicate a poor correlation between radon and its decay products in the air at the researched dwellings.     

Cross sections of Au at 10 A GeV and of Pb at 158 A GeV

We have measured total and elemental charge changing cross sections fro the fragmentation of 10 AGeV ¹⁹⁷Au- and 158 AgeV ²⁰⁷Pb-beams interacting with different targets (C, CH₂, Al, Cu, Ag, and Pb) using stacks of CR-39 and of BP-1 nuclear track detectors. Electromagnetic dissociation (ED) significantly contributes to these interactions besides nuclear fragmentation. Based on the factorization of elemental cross sections it is possible to separate electromagnetic dissociation cross sections from the measured data. The analysis of the Au 10 AGeV experiment is completed. For the Pb-beam the analysis is in progress. First results will be reported.     

Investigation of free radicals induced by light ions in CR-39 using ESR spectroscopy

In previous investigations the formation of radicals induced by γ-irradiation in CR-39 samples has been studied by electron spin resonance (ESR) spectroscopy. On the other hand, all attempts fail to detect radicals in samples irradiated by particles (p, and neutrons). The present work succeeded in detection of radicals produced by charged particle radiation in CR-39 (TASTRAK). The detectors were irradiated with protons of 7 MeV and -particles of 3 MeV with fluences in the order of 10¹¹–10¹² particles/cm². The observed ESR signal is composed of at least four different resonance lines for each of which we determined the amplitudes, g-factors, lifetimes and the G-value. The amplitude of the total ESR signal decreases rapidly with a short and a longer lifetime. About 5 days after irradiation the ESR intensity decreased to an undetectable value. The lowest detectable dose (LDD) is of the order of 1 kGy.     

Alpha-particle calibration of CR-39 using a beehive collimator

A device to determine the detection efficiency of CR-39 for alpha particles is presented. A beehive collimator restricted the angle of incidence of alpha particles on a CR-39 sheet, such that the total number of alpha emitters could be determined. This makes it possible to obtain the critical angle of incidence, Θ_C, and the maximum angle of incidence resulting in round (diameter ratio <1.100) etch pits, Θ_max. In this work, these angles were determined for incidence energies around 7.5 MeV (more specifically 6.1 and 8.8 MeV).     

Techniques to investigate the characteristic of CR-39 detectors using Am---Be neutron source

Two techniques have been developed to investigate the characteristic of the sensitivity of CR-39 (polyallyldiglycol carbonate) track detector using Am---Be neutron source. The firstis to measure volume track density created by fast neutrons in CR-39 detectors. The second is to measure areal asymptotic track density on the surface of CR-39 sheets. Two types of CR-39—SY-2 CR-39 made in China and another made in USA were calibrated using the techniques. It shows that the two types of CR-39 detectors have nearly the same sensitivity to detect fast neutrons. The techniques developed in this work can be applied to calibration of other track detectors.     

Track etch rates along the trajectories of nitrogen and oxygen ions in CR-39

Experimental studies on track etch rates in CR-39 performed with protons, deuterons and alpha particles as well as ⁷Li, ¹¹B and ¹²C ions were extended to ¹⁴N and ¹⁶O ions. The results are compatible with the general systematics found for the dependence on the kind of ion and its initial energy. Analysing the etch rate ratios as function of the restricted energy loss (REL), the non-existence of a unique relationship has been confirmed. However, assuming a dependence of the etch rate ratio not only on REL, but also on the depth within the detector where a given REL value occurs, all experimental data could be adjusted. The experiments with ¹⁴N and ¹⁶O ions allow extension of the REL range studied up to about 14 000 MeV/cm. The whole area relevant to neutron-induced charged particles generated within the CR-39 detectors is covered thereby. Having added the data for ¹⁴N and ¹⁶O ions, the array of curves for the etch rate ratio could be expanded up to 14 000 MeV/cm without inconsistencies, demonstrating the compatibility of the new data set also quantitatively.     

Studies on the track formation mechanism of the heavy ions in CR-39

The bulk etch rate for two types of CR-39 detector was measured as a function of temperature and the activation energies of bulk etching was determined. Experimental values of track etch rate were derived directly from the function of the succesive measured track length vrs. etching time for ²⁰⁹Bi, ¹²⁹Xe and ²⁰Ne ions.

The maximum etchable length of 13 MeV/u ²⁰⁹Bi and 13.04 MeV/u ¹²⁹Xe ions have been measured at and below these energies. A comparison of the measured and calculated track length data is presented.     

Measurement of indoor Rn using CR-39 under a thin film geometry

In this work an assembly for indoor ²²²Rn measurement is presented. This assembly is made up of two acrylic plates (14 cm×14 cm) separated by a distance of 4 mm. To prevent radon daughters from outside entering the assembly (and produce alpha particle tracks striking the CR-39 detector placed in the central region of one of these plates), the borders of these plates were progressively closed, leaving open only a rectangular aperture of 5 mm×4 mm. The size of this opening was determined experimentally, by exposing in two indoor environments assemblies with different apertures as follows: (i) all borders open; (ii) two borders closed; (iii) three borders closed; (iv) four borders closed but one containing a 6 cm×4 mm opening; (v) four borders closed but one containing a 2.5 cm×4 mm opening and (vi) four borders closed but one containing a 0.5 cm×4 mm opening. Track density shows a noticeable decrease between assembly (i) and assembly (iii), remaining constant for smaller openings. Only ²²²Rn, a noble gas, should enter the assembly independently of the opening size.     

Influence of oxygen on the track etch rate along light ion trajectories in CR-39

The role of oxygen for stabilising radicals to form permanent damages in irradiated samples which are basically important for the etching process of track detectors has been studied. Samples of CR-39 were irradiated with 4 MeV -particles with a fluence of 30 000 particles per cm². The irradiations were performed in three different regimes:

• variation of out-gassing time in vacuum before irradiation;

• no out-gassing time but varied post-irradiation storage times in vacuum;

• variation of both storage times in vacuum before and after irradiation.

Generally, the absence of dissolved oxygen in the irradiated sample results in a decreased detection sensitivity in comparison with the detection properties and track parameters of samples irradiated in air. To determine the sensitivity the depth dependence of the track etch rate v_T(x) along the particle trajectory has been measured. From the observation of the dependence of the decreasing sensitivity on the post-irradiation storage time in vacuum, a lifetime of free radicals of 30 min could be derived. The amount of permanent damages responsible for the etching mechanism is related to the concentration profile of back-diffused oxygen and the REL-dependent radical concentration. This confirms previous results that the detection sensitivity is not a simple function of REL but depends on both REL and x the stronger the deeper within the irradiated sample.     

Particularization of alpha contamination using CR-39 track detectors

Solid-state nuclear track detectors have found wide use in various domains of science and technology, e.g. in environmental experiments. The measurement of alpha activity on sources in an environment, such as air is not easy because of short penetration range of alpha particles. Furthermore, measurement of alpha activity by most gas ionization detectors suffers from high background induced by the accompanying gamma radiation. Solid state nuclear track detectors (SSNTDs) have been used successfully as detecting devices and as a passive system to detect alpha contamination on different surfaces. This work presents the response of CR-39 (for two types) to alpha particles from two sources, ²³⁸Pu with energy 5 MeV and ²⁴¹Am with energy 5.4 MeV. The methods of etching and counting are investigated, along with the achievable linearity, efficiency and reproducibility. The sensitivity to low activity and energy resolution are studied.      

Structure effect in response function of CR-39 detector

The structure effect of CR-39 on the rate of its hydrolysing reaction was studied. It has been indicated that the sensitivity of any plastic detector is dependent on the its posibility to alkalai hydrolyse. It is known that polyesters and polycarbonates undergo decarboxylation under ionizing radiation so that would point to the carbonate group as the amplify induced radiation sensitive link. The structure effect would be one of the keys to develope the new, more sensitive nuclear track detectors.     

Reduction of background in CR-39 SSNTD using chemical pre-etching methods

Presently, CR-39 Solid State Nuclear Track Detectors (SSNTD) is being used for Fast Neutron Personnel Monitoring in India. Individual detectors are cut manually from CR-39 sheets. Laser-cutting of the sheets will ensure precision and also save on the laborious efforts involved in sheet cutting. It was observed that there is a slight increase in background tracks due to laser-cutting. Studies were carried out on the effect of chemical pre-etching at higher temperatures in properties of CR-39 such as the background, sensitivity and minimum measurable dose. For this purpose a pre-etch step was included in the normal processing of the CR-39 foils in an elevated temperature electrochemical cell (ETECE cell) and the duration for pre-etch step at elevated temperature was optimized. Samples of CR-39 exposed to dose equivalents ranging from 1 mSv to 10 mSv using Am-Be neutron source were processed by both the methods, under normal processing using ECE cell and in the optimized chemical pre-etch followed by normal processing. The dose responses of CR-39 processed by both methods are compared in this paper.      

Estimation of the latent track size of CR-39 using atomic force microscope

As a frame work of the study for the latent track size measurement using atomic force microscope, we have measured the minute etch pits and the extremely small amount of bulk etch of CR-39 at the beginning of chemical etching, and obtained its growth curves in nanometer dimensions. The pieces of CR-39 were exposed to 6 MeV/nC and Fe ions with normal incidence angle and were etched in 70°C 7 N NaOH solution for 0.5,1,2,3,5 min. The diameters of latent track were estimated to be 17 nm for Fe ions and 8 nm for C ions, respectively. These values are comparable to the experimental data on the average ‘track core diameters’ that have been obtained by various experimental techniques.     

Comparison of SEM and optical analyses of DT neutron tracks in CR-39 detectors

A solid state nuclear track detector, CR-39, was exposed to DT neutrons. After etching, the resultant tracks were analyzed using both an optical microscope and a scanning electron microscope (SEM). In this communication, both methods of analyzing DT neutron tracks are discussed.     

Extension of alpha particles in CR-39-etched track depth model to heavier ions

In this paper, the previous modeling of protons and alpha particles tracks depth in CR-39 nuclear track detectors was extensively extended to describe tracks of heavier ions. These ions include deuteron, lithium, boron, carbon, nitrogen and oxygen. Based on a compilation of published experimental results related to these ions, a set of empirical fitted model parameters is obtained for each type of ion. The A dependence of these model parameters is obtained.     

Performance of CR-39 with addition of DOP (dioctylphthalate) for fast neutron dosimetry

The ENEA fast neutron dosemeter is based on a planar poly allyl diglicol carbonate (PADC) placed in a polyethylene holder. The present paper reports the results of an experimental study of a CR-39^® material with the addition of 0.1% of dioctylphthalate (DOP) produced by the Italian company Intercast Europe S.p.A.

The etching procedure is: pre-etching with 40% KOH water solution 6.25 N and 60% ethyl alcohol at 70°C followed by 12 h of etching in 6.25 N KOH water solution. For the energy dependence of response, dosemeters have been irradiated with neutron sources (²⁴¹Am–Be, ²⁵²Cf, Pu–Li) and 14.9 MeV monoenergetic neutrons. The dosimetric performance of the material for fast neutrons is expressed in terms of sensitivity, background value, lowest detectable dose and energy dependence of response. Moreover, the results of a quality acceptance test of the material, performed on 11 sheets (980×980 mm², 1.4 mm thick) of the same production batch, are given. Therefore, the homogeneity of the neutron sensitivity and of the background signal within a sheet and the whole batch is considered. The results are compared with the acceptance test outcome for a CR39 standard material batch.     

Effects of stirring on the bulk etch rate of CR-39 detector

It is well established that the bulk etch rates for solid state nuclear track detectors are affected by the concentration and the temperature of the etchant. Recently, we found that the bulk etch rate for the LR 115 detector to be affected by stirring during etching. In the present work, the effects of stirring on the bulk etch rate of the CR-39 detector is investigated. One set of sample was etched under continuous stirring by a magnetic stirrer at 70°C in a 6.25 N NaOH solution, while the other set of samples was etched without the magnetic stirrer. After etching, the bulk etch thickness was measured using Form Talysurf PGI (Taylor Hobson, Leicester, England). It was found that magnetic stirring did not affect the bulk etch of the CR-39 detector, which was in contrast to the results for the LR 115 detector.     

Computer simulation of the processes in a CR-39 neutron detector

The application of CR-39 as a fast neutron dosimeter, based on counting elastic recoil nuclei tracks of H, C and O nuclei in a geometrically matched pair of detectors, was studied. A computer simulation of the processes during the exposure of a detector pair to neutrons is presented. The energy and spatial distribution of the recoil nuclei was calculated with the MCNP 4B program package. On the basis of this distribution, a Monte-Carlo procedure for the generation of latent tracks in the CR-39 detectors was run. Additionally, a procedure for calculation of the chemical track etching for revealing the visible track parameters was performed to obtain the detector response.