Far-ultraviolet signatures of the {sup 3}He(n,tp) reaction in noble gas mixtures

Previous work showed that the {sup 3}He(n,tp) reaction in a cell of {sup 3}He at atmospheric pressure generated tens of far-ultraviolet photons per reacted neutron. Here we report amplification of that signal by factors of 1000 and more when noble gases are added to the cell. Calibrated filter-detec...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Applied physics letters 2010-12, Vol.97 (23)
Main Authors: Hughes, Patrick P., Thompson, Alan K., Vest, Robert E., Coplan, Michael A., Clark, Charles W., Institute for Physical Science and Technology, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland 20742, Joint Quantum Institute, National Institute of Standards and Technology and University of Maryland, Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
ACCELERATORS
AMPLIFICATION
ATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE
BARYON REACTIONS
BARYONS
BOSONS
CALIBRATION
CHARGED PARTICLES
CYCLIC ACCELERATORS
DETECTION
DISPERSIONS
EFFICIENCY
ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION
ELEMENTARY PARTICLES
ELEMENTS
EMISSION
FAR ULTRAVIOLET RADIATION
FERMIONS
FILTERS
FLUIDS
GASES
HADRON REACTIONS
HADRONS
HELIUM 3 TARGET
MASSLESS PARTICLES
MEASURING INSTRUMENTS
MIXTURES
NEUTRON DETECTION
NEUTRON DETECTORS
NEUTRON REACTIONS
NEUTRONS
NONMETALS
NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS
NUCLEAR REACTIONS
NUCLEON REACTIONS
NUCLEONS
PHOTONS
PROPORTIONAL COUNTERS
RADIATION DETECTION
RADIATION DETECTORS
RADIATIONS
RARE GASES
SYNCHROTRONS
TARGETS
TRITONS
ULTRAVIOLET RADIATION
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Summary:Previous work showed that the {sup 3}He(n,tp) reaction in a cell of {sup 3}He at atmospheric pressure generated tens of far-ultraviolet photons per reacted neutron. Here we report amplification of that signal by factors of 1000 and more when noble gases are added to the cell. Calibrated filter-detector measurements show that this large signal is due to noble gas excimer emissions and that the nuclear reaction energy is converted to far-ultraviolet radiation with efficiencies of up to 30%. The results have been placed on an absolute scale through calibrations at the NIST SURF III synchrotron. They suggest possibilities for high-efficiency neutron detectors as an alternative to existing proportional counters.
ISSN:0003-6951
1077-3118
DOI:10.1063/1.3521285