p

Contents

V
Preface to the Second Edition
vii
Preface to the First Edition

1. TOOLS FOR DOING NUCLE AR PHYSICS 1-56

PART-I : PHYSICAL TOOLS

I.I.I Introduction 1
Interacti on Between Particles and Matter: A Brief Survey 2
1.1.2
Detector s for Nuclear Particles 7
1.1.3
1.1.4 Particle Accelera tors 22

1.1.5 Beta Ray Spectrom eter 33

1.1.6 Brief Account of Counter Electron ics: Logic 35

PART-I I: MATHEMATICAL TOOLS

I .II. 1 Introduction 37
I.Il.2 Particle in a One-Dim ensional Infinite Square Well 38
I.Il.3 One-Dim ensional Potential Step 40
l.Il.4 Parity 44
45
l.lI.4A Particle in a One-Dim ensional Square Potential Well
49
1.Il.5 Harmoni c Oscillat or-Parab olic Potential Well
50
l .Il.6 Angular Moment um Operator and its Eigenval ues
53
1.11. 7 The Total Angular Moment um Vector j
2. RADIOACTIVITY 57-90
2-1 Introduction 57
2.2 58
Properties of Radioact ive Rays
 1
Tools for Doing Nuclear Physics

"Science clears the fields on which technology can build."

-Werner Heisenberg

PART-I: PHYSICAL TOOLS

a 1.1.1 INTRODUCT ION

Imagine the plight of a hiker on hills not having a can-opener or knife to open cans of food. It
is a terrible experience to be stranded without proper tools. In understanding nuclear physics
also we need tools. During the past I 00 years, many ingenious and powerful tools have been
invented. Some of them have no longer remained part of nuclear exploration alone, but have
acquired wide applications in fields like chemistry, biochemistry, biophysics, atomic and molecular
physics and so on. For example, the technique of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR), which
has its origin in Nuclear Physics, is increasingly being used in areas other than Nuclear Physics.
In Chapter 9 we will consider some techniques of Nuclear Physics widely used in other areas
of science.
It is equally important to learn the skills of using some mathematical tools, particularly some
elementary wave mechanics, without which it is impossible to appreciate and understand Nuclear
Phenomena. To familiarise the students with these tools, this chapter has been divided into two
parts. Part I deals with Physical Tools like nuclear radiation detectors, accelerators, spectrometers,
etc.
. On the other hand , Part II deals with Mathematical Tools Ii~ wave mechanics of a particle
m a potential barrier or well. Both these parts deal with basic tools essential to the understanding
of Nuclear Physics.
2
Nuclear Physics
•
AND MATTER: A BRIEF SURVEY
1.1.2 INTERACTION BETWEEN PARTICLES
on our unde rstan ding of pass age of radiation
The design of a nuclear radiation dete ctor depends
Physics. How ever , beca use of its importance
thro ugh matter. Strictly, this is governed by Atomic
features.
in the design of nuclear detectors, we shall outline its main
pass es thro ugh a piec e of matter, there are
Whe n a collimated beam of monoenergetic particles
a parti cle unde rgoe s man y interactions, every
two extreme cases of interest: (i) In the first case,
a smal l-ang le scattering; (ii) In the second case
time losing a small amount of energy and suffering
rial or is remo ved from the beam in one single
the particle either passes unharmed through the mate
cted in Figs . I.I.I (a) and (b).
'cata strop hic' encounter. These two cases are depi

E
p
Sl

0 X 0 X N(x)
T
01
{a) {b)
d:
IS
through matter.
Fig. 1.1.1. Passage of a collimated beam of particles le
(a) Each particle undergoes many interactions. m
passes unharmed.
(b) A particle is either removed from the beam or w
We shall consider these two cases in some detail. v~

ns, it prog ress ively lose s energy. )

(i) Whe~ a parti cle unde rgoe s man y inter actio
energy spread as shown in Fig. 1.1.2.
monoenergetic beam of such particles will show an
w

ar.
Energy of the
(/)
Energy after ~E
Q)
incident beam
0
·-e passing through
11'
Cl.
a slab of matter
0
...
Q)
.0
E
::,
z Se

E' E

• ·
Fig. 1.1.2. Energy spread of.a beam of monoenergehc, heavy and charged particles after passing
through a slab of matter.
b f . . bsorbitl
Figure 1.1.3 shows the. behaviour of a num er o partic1es transmitted through an a or
.
piece of matter as a function of the absorber thickn ess.
-
Tools tor Doing Nuclear Physics 3

N(x)

R0 is the mean range

--------------------

Fig. 1.1.3. Existance of range for a beam of heavy charged particles.

Clearly, all particles are transmitted up to a certain thickness. At a thickness R , half the
0
particles get stopped . R0 is the mean range. At a sufficiently large thickness, all particles
get
stopped. The fluctuation in range is called straggling.
Heavy charged particles like a proton, a-particle, fission fragment, etc. fall in this category
.
They all have a fairly definite range in a gas, liquid or solid. We repeat that the energy
loss
occurs in a large number of small interactions. The particle has such a large momentum that
its -
direction is not significantly changed during its slowing process (see Fig. I .I.I). The energy
loss
is mainly due to the excitation and ionisation of atoms in its path. These heavy charged particle
s
lose more energy per unit length of the path near the end of their range, since they are moving
more slowly and have more time to interact with the atoms which they pass by. This enables
us to assume that the energy loss per unit length of the path is inversely proportional to
the
velocity, v.

-dK C
- - =-
dx V

where C is a constant that depends on the absorbing material. For heavy charged particles
like
. 1e, we can say: K = -I mv2 kin '
an a-part1c = et1c energy.
2

dv C
-mv- =-
dx V

Let R be the range of the particle . Therefore, for x = 0, v = v and for x = R, v = 0.

0
Separating the variables we have,
0 R
f-mv2 dv = fC dx
0

3
This gives, mvo =CR
3
or
.. .(I.I.I)
r
1
4 Nuclear Physics
where C is another constant depending on the absorbing mate~
ial.. Equation _I.I. I is Geiger s
rule. This rule is approximately correct for any charged, heavy partic
le m any medmm and explains
how the range R is related to the particle's energ t T~e measure~e
nt of the range of a heavy
charged particle is a common method for measurmg its energy.
~1gu~e l .1.4 shows the ranges
of a-particles and protons in air. Notice that the range of a-par
ticle 1s much shorter than that
of a proton with the same energy. This is because the a -particle
is slower and is more charged
than the proton with the same energy and so, is more ionising.
Energy (keV)
0.2 4

'
u
t
(/)
Q)

<1l
a.
d
a particles
(Left scale)
3
r
(/)
C
0
0...
a.
E E
C 0.1 C
2 Q)
Q)
CJ)
CJ)
C C
<1l <1l
a: a:
Protons
(Right scale)

oi..;:;-=====--L___ _.1.__ _ _...1-_ _ _~o the

0 5 10 15 20 IS (
Energy in MeV --+
Fig 1.1.4. Ranges of a-particles and protons in air at I 5°C and cha
76 cm Hg pressure. [From
Experimenta l Nuclear Physics, Vol. I, E. Segre, ed., Wiley ( 1953)) the
. ma~
The energy loss rate - dK/dx is called the stopp ing power. It of ti
varies from substance fl
substance because the atomic levels are different and so the energ
y loss in the ionisation procesl (K.I
varies . A more significant factor affecting the stopping factor is cont
the density of the absorber t
the number of electrons in a unit volume is roughly proportiona
l to the density. The more th1
number of electrons per unit volume, the more is the energy loss
due to the excitation of the5i
electro~s. If we replace - dK/dx by -(_!_) dK
where p is the density, the stopping power.
p dx
(now expressed in kg per m2 of matter traversed) become comp
arable. For example, the rant
of] O MeV protons is about 1.4 kg m- 2 in air, 1. 7 kg m-2 in alumi
nium and 2.1 kg m- 2 in coPP~
(ii) Let us _now consider the second important case of intera
ction between a monoene~ge~
beam of particles and matter in such a mann er that a particle in the
beam is either unharmed wtb
absorber or is totally removed from the beam in a single "catastroph
ic" event (see Fig. J.J. l}
If an interaction removes the partic. Fi
le from the beam then the features of the transrTI~~
.

beam are quite different from those described before . Clearly,

the transmitted beam ha5
Tools for Doing Nuclear Physics s
same particle energy because those particles which have come out of the absorber (or are
transmitted) have not undergone any interaction. For every material thickness dx,, the number
of particles undergoing interactions is proportional to the number of incident particles and so.
dN
--=µN(x)
dx
where µ is the constant of proportionality called the absorption coefficient. This on integration
yields.
. .. (1.1.2)
i. e. , the number of transmitted particles decreases exponentially. This is indicated in Fig. 1.1.5.

rn
C:
0
-0 rn
C:
.c 0
a. ...
0 0 Q)
cii ai
.c ...
E o
:::,
z

Absorber thickness
X

Fig. 1.1.5. Absorption of light particles like photons or electrons by matter.

In this case, no range can be defined, but one can talk about the mean free path defined as
the average distance travelled by a particle before undergoing a collision. This mean free path
is equal to I/µ. Photons or electrons approximate this behaviour.
The slowing down of electrons with energies less than 1 MeV is like the slowing down of heavy
charged particles. This is mainly due to the ionisation and excitation-collision proct!sses. However,
the electron does not exhibit a well-defined range because (i) it is much lighter than the proton (the
mass of electron is l /1836 the mass of proton) and so can be easily deflected from the direction
of the main beam; and (ii) a few collisions are sufficient to stop an electron. At higher energies
(K.E. > I MeV), the energy loss of an electron is chiefly due to Bremsstrahlung (production of
continuous X-rays). The probability for this process increases with the energy.
Figure I.I.6 depicts the Bremsstrahlung process.
E
hf= E- E'
·- ·- ·
-·-·----~

Nucleus
charge Ze Electron

\ E'

Fig. 1.1.6. The accelerated electron radiates and loses energy in the form of a photon
(Bremsstrahlung).
6

We shal l now outli ne the inter actio n betw een phot

thro ugh thre e prin cipal proc esse s.
1 . Phot oele ctric effe ct
ons and matter. Photons interact with matt '
Nuclear Physics

er

2. Com pton effec t

3. Pair prod uctio n.
In the phot oele ctric effec t, an atom abso rbs the phot
on and an elec tron from one of the shells
is ejec ted. In the Com pton effec t, the phot on gets scatt
ered by an atom ic elect ron. In pair production
the phot on is conv erted into an elec tron posi tron
pair. This last proc ess can occu r only in the I

pres ence of the nucl ear Cou lomb field whic h help
s to bala nce ener gy and mom entu m .
The likel ihoo d of the abov e three proc esse s is
ener gy depe nden t. At low ener gies below a 1
few keV the phot oele ctric effec t dom inate s, the
Com pton effec t is negl igibl e and pair production
is energetically impo ssibl e.
The rest ener gy 2 m0 c 2 of the pair is 1.02 MeV
, and so the y-ray mus t have at least an
ener gy of 1.02 MeV to prod uce a pair. If the 1
ener gy of the incid ent y-ray is 3.02 MeV, for f
exam ple, the elect ron and posi tron wou ld shar e 2.00
MeV of kine tic energy. If this kinetic energy 1.
can be mea sure d, it wou ld tell us the y-ray ener
gy.
h
Equa tion 1.I.2 is also valid for y-ray abso rptio n (like
for elect ron absorption). n
Reca ll that this equa tion is a direc t cons eque nce C
of the fact that phot ons do not lose energy c,
in smal l step s; a phot on is eithe r scatt ered out of
the beam or is absorbed. The attenuation of a t~
mon ochr oma tic beam of phot ons follo ws Eq. 1.I.2
. e1
The abso rptio n cons tant µ for y phot ons of vario
us ener gies is illustrated in Fig. 1.1. 7. T
QI
200

'-~E Photo electr ic effect

::1.
~
Q)
·u

r--
i:
Q)
0 100
u Pair production
C
0
e-
0
rJJ
.I:J
<(
Comp ton
effect

o L___ .___. __.__ .'-'-'- -.u..L ~~::: ;;::::c ::::-.~

0 .1 ini:
10
y-ray energy in MeV 1S J
the
Fig. 1.1. 7. Abso rptio n of y-rays in lead. The 'tota l' curve
is obtai ned by addin g theµ for the 3
impo rtant processes. (From W. Heitler, The Quan ele,
tum Theo ry of Radi ation , 3rd Ed.,
Clare ndon Press, Oxford, 1954 .) ' I phc
 Tools tor Doing Nuclear Physics 7
1.1.3 DETECTORS FOR NUCL EAR PARTICLES

The survey of interaction between particles and matter would help us in understanding
features
of detectors for nuclear particles. It will be impossible to describe all the differe
nt types of
detectors in this small section and so, we will stick to some widely and currently used
instruments.
Ionisation produced by charged particles is the basis for detecting many nuclea
r particles. In
gases, one electron-ion pair is formed for each 30 eV of energy lost by the charge
d particle.
The a-particles and protons, lose energy rapidly by ionisation, and so such particle
s lose all their
energy in the detector. On the other hand, electrons and photons (y-rays) lose only
a fraction of
their original energy in a gas-filled detector. Because of its high penetrating power,
the y-ray is
particularly difficult to detect.
(i) Proportional Counter
A schematic sketch of the proportional counter is shown in Fig. 1.1.8. It is a metal
chamber
filled with a gas and having a thin wire (diameter ~ 0.1 mm) axially along the centre.
This wire
is made anode, by connecting it to a power supply as shown in the figure. A voltage
of a few
hundred volts which does not cause a discharge is applied between the wire anode
and the
metal case, which acts as the cathode. Consider now the entry of an ionising particl
e into the
chamber through the thin mica "end window". Electrons produced are attracte
d toward the
central wire anode. The electric field in the vicinity of the fine wire is very large
compared to
the other regions in the chamber and as a result, an electron near the wire acquire
s enough
energy between two successive collisions with the gas atoms to enable it to ionise
gas atoms.
This produces additional ion pairs (electrons and positive ions). This process
is called gas
amplification and the number of a ions increases by a factor ~ I 04 .

+- Signal
Anode wire

To pulse
amplifier Gas
Ionising
R
radiation
Resistance

H.V.

High voltage unit

-=- Ground
Fig. 1.1.8. 'End window ' type proportional counter.

The important fact is that the output pulse of the current is proportional to the numbe
r of
~nitial ion pairs produced by the ionising particle entering the chamber. That is, the
output signal
IS proportional to the energy of the incident particle. Becaus
e of the IR drop across the resistance,
the current pulse produces a voltage pulse, which is amplified and recorded.
When a y-photon enters the chamber, the ionisation occurs mainly due to the emissio
n of
electrons from the counter walls. Due to the large penetrating power of gamma
rays a y-ray
Photon is less likely to produce direct ionisation of gas atoms.
 I
VlE
8 Nuclear Physics
Usually the gas used is a pure noble gas, because electrons then remain free and can ~
rapidly collected. For counting fast neutrons, a gas containing hydrogen can be used. Due lv
elastic collisions, protons are produced and can be detected. When slow neutrons are to be
counted, the counter can be fill ed with the gas BF3. The following reaction takes place:
I IO 7 4
n + B ~ Li + He ...(l.l.J1
0 5 3 2

7 4
The Li and He atoms move very rapidly and so their electrons are stripped off as they
3 2

I pass through the gas.

(ii) The Geiger Counter
The construction of the Geiger Counter is similar to that of the proportional counter (see Fig. p
1.I.8). However, the voltage applied to the Geiger Counter is large enough, so that even a single tc
s
a
J:

ion pair produced by a single incident particle can produce an electric discharge. Usually, a voltage
of about 1000 volts or so for a typical pressure of about I 00 mm of mercury is enough to
trigger off a discharge when an incident particle enters the Geiger Counter. The important thing
is that the electric pulse produced in this discharge is the same, whatever the energy of the
incident particle.
The anode wire is surrounded by the slow moving positive ion sheath, which reduces the
electric field, making the discharge stop within a few microseconds (l o-6 s). As the positive ion
sheath moves away from the anode wire towards the tube 's wall (cathode), the value of the
electric field rises to permit another electric discharge due to production of electrons when the
t positive ions hit the wall of the tube. This results in a continuous electric discharge and the tube
is not ready to receive another incident particle. Therefore, some mechanism must be devised
to terminate the discharge after each event (Quenching of the counter).
The simplest method for achieving this is to make the resistor R very large (~I 06 ohms).
For a large current (at the time of discharge), this resistance has a large voltage drop (JR drop)
which makes the potential difference between the anode and cathode fall off to such an exteni
that the discharge in the counter cannot be maintained. However, this has the effect of
prolonging the time before the counter can become ready to accept another pulse. This time
interval is called the dead time and is of the order of 200 µ sec.
The monoatomic argon, which is transparent to ultraviolet light, is usually used in the Geiger
Counters at a pressure of about 100 mm of mercury. It is possible to make these counters self.
quenching by mixing argon with a polyatomic molecule such as alcohol. Typically, a Geige~
Counter contains about l 0 per cent alcohol and 90 per cent argon. This has the effect 01
ultraviolet photons from the argon getting absorbed by the alcohol so that they do not reach th1
cathode. Now, as the positive ions move toward the cathode, they collide with alcohol molecul~I
resulting in the transfer of an electron from the alcohol molecule to the argon neutralising 11·
' I
The alcohol molecules, upon arrival at the cathode, dissociate rather than eject electrons so 1~~ eleci
the discharge gets quenched. Such self-quenching by organic molecules results in the dissociat!o; are 1
of molecules and after about I 09 discharges, these molecules are used up necessiating refilliD:
Tools for Doing Nuclear Physics 9

of the Geiger Counter. It is possible to use halogen molecules for quenching, their advantage
being their tendency to recombine after dissociation.
In conclusion, one can say that the Geiger Counter is a very sensitive device for detecting
charged particles and it produces a large pulse requiring no amplification. It suffers from the
disadvantages of being quite slow, being incapable of providing information about the type of
particle which may have produced a count and its lack of information about the energy of the
particle counted.
(iii) Scintillation Counter
One of the early methods used for the detection and counting of a-particles was to make them
strike a zinc sulphide screen and then observe the scintillations on the screen through a lens acting
as a magnifier. The modern scintillation counter uses a scintillating crystal. Light from the crystal
is incident on a photosensitive surface called the photo cathode of a photomultiplier tube.
Photoelectrons produced at this photocathode are directed by an appropriate accelerating voltage
to the first dynode (anode), where a single accelerated photoelectron can knock out "secondary"
Gamma ray Scintillator

Reflector

Photo-
cathode Electron

First Second
dynode dynode

Fig. l.I.9. Scintillator put on a photomultiplier tube. An overall multiplying factor of up to 109
can be achieved.
electrons. This dynode is the cathode relative to another dynode where more secondary electrons
are liberated. This process continues through several stages (about 10 to 14) until the burst of
10
c::
,
Nuclear Physics
electrons beco l
an . mes arge enough to constitute an electric pulse that can be further amplified b
1
e ~ctro~ic amplifier. Pulses from this amplifier are then electronically counted. By th 1·Y
teehn1qu d · ·d . . . s
. . e m 1v1 ual radiation particles of very low energy can also be counted. Figure 1.1.9 shov.,1
~ scmtillator mounted on a photomultiplier tube. The most important property of such an assembly
~s ~hat the electric pulses produced are proportional to the energy of the incident y-rays. Thus
it is possible not only to detect the y-rays but to measure their energy as well. A specialised
computer like device called a multichannel analyser can sort out the output-electric pulses
according to their magnitudes and record the number of pulses of each magnitude entering the
instrument. The resulting data constitutes an energy spectrum of the y-rays penetrating the
scintillator crystal.
137 Cs source is shown in Fig. I .I. I 0.
A typical y-ray spectrum obtained with

ai
C:
C: Photopeak of 0.631 MeV y-ray
Cl!
.s:::. (Full energy peak)
u
<ii
0..

"'::,
C:
0
u 6 E, Full width
0 ---11.i-----+.,.,...1- at haIf
<ii maximum
.0
E
::,
z

Pulse height or channel number

Fig. 1.1.JO. y-ray spectrum of 137Cs. The single photoelectric peak of 0.631 MeV y-ray follows
the Compton edge.

y-ray being energetic photons (uncharged) have to be indirectly detected. As seen in the
previous section, y-rays interact with matter mainly in three ways: the photoelectric effect, the
Compton effect and the production of the positron-electron pair. For y-ray having an energy of
up to 2 MeV, the first two processes are the most impo1iant, but it is the photoelectric effect
which is actually utilised. This is because when a y-ray produces a photoelectron, the
photoelectron has an energy which is essentially the same as the absorbed y-ray energy. In the
photoelectric effect, the y-ray loses all its energy. Thus all y-ray of one energy will produce in
a scintillating crystal, photoelectrons having the same energy. The amount of light produced in
the crystal being proportional to this energy, the electrical pulse obtained from the photomultiplier
will also be proportional to they-ray energy.
Two types of scintillators are widely used: sodium iodide and plastic. Sodium iodide crystals
are usually doped with a small amount of thallium and denoted by Nal(Tl). The Tl atoms act
as luminescence centres. Nal(Tl) crystals are dense enough to have good efficiency of y-raY
3
detection but the decay of each pulse is slow (~ 0.25 µ sec) compared to plastic which has
9
decay time of~ 10- sec. However, the y-ray collection efficiency of plastic is low and so tbeY
are mainly used for the detection of charged particles like electrons.
p
Doing Nuclear Physics 11
Tools tor
k 1 Fig. I .I.10. The Compton electrons may have any value from zero up to the
00
~ a which is about 0.22 MeV less than the y-ray energy (in the energy range of
max1m~;0 5 MeV). The Compton electrons are spread out more or less continuously under
0.5 Me eak and form a 'background' . The Compton 'edge' representing the maximum energy
the photoPelectrons, can be clearly seen in Fig. I .I. I 0. The pair production effect is useful for
comp~ogn higher energy y-ray.
detectin
•ntillation counter coupled with a multichannel analyser constitutes a y-ray spectrometer.
c: :C~-ray spectrometer 1!1ust _be calibrated u~ing y-ray of kn~wn energy. The width of the
Su · ergy peak at half height 1s called full w1dth at half max 1mum, FWHM It depends on
full enmber of light photons produced by the incident y-ray photon. Typically ~ EIE is of the
the nu ,11

order of 20 per cent at Ey = I 00 keV and 6 to 8 per cent at Ey = I MeV (for the Nal detector).

-M = energy reso1uhon.
.
Ey
In many cases, a resolution of about 10 per cent is sufficient. However, in some cases
y-ray energies are so close that a scintillation counter is unable to separate them. One has to
then use a semiconductor detector.
(iv) Solid State or Semiconductor Detectors
Before discussing the semiconductor detector, it will be of interest to compare a gamma ray
spectrum as seen by a semiconductor detector and by a scintillation detector. Figure I .I.11 shows
they-ray spectrum of 6°Co (cobalt-60) observed by a germanium detector and a scintillation
detector.
The tremendous improvement in energy resolution provided by the solid state, Lithium Drifted
Gennanium (Ge(Li)) detector has brought these detectors to the forefront since 1960 and in
many areas, they have completely replaced scintillation counters.
A solid state detector, like an ionisation chamber, collects and measures the charge liberated
by incident radiation. However, it has two great advantages over an ionisation chamber using a
gas: (i) Because of the greater density of solids.

Lithium drifted 1.173MeV

104
ai Germanium detector
C:
+
\
C:
ca
.c
(.)
,._ 103
Q)
0.
rJ)

'E::,
0 3 x inch
() 102 Nal(TI) detector

1.000 1.200 1.400

Gamma-ray Energy, MeV

Fig. l.1.11. Gamma ray spectrum of 6°Co. Note the fantastic improvement in energy resolution
provided by Ge(Li), (Lithium drifted Germanium detector) compared to Nal(Tl)
scintillation detector.
 1
Nuclear Physies
12
much greater stopping power for incident radiation. This implies th~
compare d to gases th ey have ..) h
even for penetrating radiation like y-ray, a solid state detector can be ~sed. (u T e en~rgy requ~ec
for the production of an ion pair in solids is much low~r than m gases. Let th1~ energy ht
W W = 42 eV for helium, 22 eV for xenon and 34 eV for air. On the ?ther hand, ~ ~ 2.~ eV fo:
·
germanium an d 3 .5 ey 1 ' d · do~·
~or silicon · The energies are low for these sohds because 10msat10n
not occur from an atomic level to the continuum, but from the valence b~nd to the con uction band
Lower values of w imply higher energy resolution, as is clear from Fig. 1.I. I I .
A semiconductor detector is actually a reverse biased p-n junction. It is schematicalh
shown in Fig. I.I. I 2.
+ Positive bias voltage

+
Signal +
+
+
Incident particle Depletion + -
':'
layer +
- ........ ........ + +

0--.. . . . +
+ ,.__
+
Thin p-type layer
Thin n-type layer __. - Ion pair +
+
+

Fig. 1.1.12. An ideal semiconductor detector, showing fully depleted region and thin heavily
doped surface layers of opposite types.

When ionising radiation enters the depletion layer which is free from any charges, it producei
hole-electron pairs. Because of the smaller value of W compared to gases we have many mor1
ions produced, and hence the statistical fluctuation in the number of ions is much less, resultin~
in highly improved resolution.
With very pure semiconductor materials, depletion layers of only about 1 mm are attainable.
This thickness is enough to stop an a-particle or a proton, but not to stop a y-ray photon. 11
was for this reason that an ingenious technique known as lithium drifting was developed.
Usually lithium is diffused into the surface of p-type germanium. The device is then heate0
(~ 200° C) to increase the mobility of lithium atoms and a reverse bias is applied. Positive lithiUJII
ions then drift into the depletion layer and compensate the negative impurities in the p-t'fP1
region. Thus, this drift of Li-ions produces a very pure semiconductor region (with no cbargi
carrier) between the n and p-type regions. Depletion layers of several centimetres (7 cITl or
more) have been produced in this manner, making the detector extremely useful for y-r3)
detection as well.
Figure I.I.13 shows the y-ray spectrum of 7.5 h 171 Er using a 20 cm3 Ge(Li) detector. Tb'.
1

energy resolution is ~0.4 per cent at 1 MeV. Ge(Li)-detectors having volumes up to 100 crfl
,ols tor Doing Nuclear Physics 13
5
10 F7r-T---r--r---r---r-,--,--,--,-.--,-,-----.-,--,--=-.----.-- ,
>Ql --
.:,(_

>"!
Ql co
..J '
.:,(_ 0
co (')
l{)
0)
C\J

en
c:::, 103
0
(.)

102

.
···.··.•
....··.

1
10 ~..__..__...__...__,__...__,__,__,__'---''---''---'----l--..l--L--L---1.--L.....J
0 50 100 150 200
Channel number
Fig. 1.1.13. '(-ray spectrum of 7.5 h 17 1Er using a 20 cm 3 Lthium Drifted Germanium, Ge(Li)
detector. (S.B. Patel et al. , Phys ., Rev. C. Vol. 14 No. 5, 1976.)
~ave been routinely built. These are particularly useful in high energy physics. Germanium,
. echause of its higher density as compared to silicon, is more suitable for y-ray detection. However,
11 as disad ·
littl vantage: lt must be cooled since some hole-electron pairs can be produced by as
0
Ge(~~s -66 eV and at room temperature thermal energies are sufficient to produce such pairs.
ke t; dete~tors are thus thermally connected with a copper finger, the tip of which is always
p ipped mto liquid nitrogen.
(v) Co .
T lllpton Suppressed Germanium Detectors
Wo recent d
deve\ evelopments have taken the field of y-ray spectroscopy by storm. The first is the
deple~tment of intrinsic germanium detectors made from ultra pure gemianium. Large enough
arran on layers can be obtained without lithium drifting. Further a compact liquid nitrogen devar
Tgement makes it possible to use many detectors together for multiple coincidence work.
he second is· the use of anti-Compton shie · lds on the germanium· d etectors. This · makes
even th
Th e Weakest Y-lines to stand out in the y-spectrum.
ese d
look_ at th· eve1opments have revolutionised our tools for nuclea r spectroscopy. Let us therefore
ts new 'V • •
The . ,-ray detector m some detail.
· ·
result inPrimary cntenon for a y-ray detector 1·s that every y-ray that stn.k es the detector should
detector a Voltage pulse, proportional to the origina l y-ray energy. Technically, one says that a
must h ave a good response function . . Unfortunate 1y, a germanium . d etector does not
 pt,ysiCS
NtJcfel:l'
14 · elY low.
latlv ·
. h is re cattenng,
satisfy this requirement quite well. It has the atomic number Z = ~2, whi~oJllPtofl s 1 MeV
Germanium is also moderately dense and it interacts with y-rays mamly by detector, a do not
c . t: . h b 20 cmJ Ge- rays
1or y-rays m the t:nergy range of about l MeV. Wit a out a f such "/' detector
y-rays has an absorption probability of about 3/4. This implie_s th_at 1/:towitb tbe
interact at all with the detector. Further, out of those y-rays which mtera eaks)- 'fh 15
~e:s
eviden~

only about 15 to 20 per cent give rise to useful full-energy peaks _(p~oto-Phe ratio:
in Fig. 1.1.11 . If the area under the y-rays spectrum is measured, it gives t

Area under photo-peak = P =15 _ 20%

Total area T d to full y-ray
t correspon
Thus about 80 to 85 per cent events in the Ge-detector do no · ts (80-85 per cent)
·ority even
energy, implying a poor response function. Consequently, these maJ Often one wants to
form unwanted garbage. This is the story of the y-ray singles speci;:m-to be performed (see
determine a sequence of y-rays and so a coincidence meas u:ement d as doubles coincidence
Sec. l .1.6). Coincidence measurement involving 2 y-rays is calle a rement At least 2
. l . . II d . l coincidence measu .
measurement. 0 ne mvo vmg 3 y-rays 1s ca e a tnp es . . ent and so on. Consider
detectors are required for a doubles experiment, 3 for a tnples expenm . h detector give
. . 15 20 er cent events m eact 4 cent of
a double comc1dence measurement. Clearly, now to P
useful full-energy events. Thus, in a doubles coincidence measurement, on1Y . .
2 0 ?er
th th
the total events obtained in the two detectors are good peak-peak values. This . l~phes at e
remaining 96 to 98 per cent events are unwanted garbage. This is a hornfymg and very
undesirable situation.
What is the way out of such a situation? Clearly the small peak to total (PIT) ratio is due
to the fact that the Ge-detector interacts with y-rays primarily by Compton scattering in the
energy range of interest. About 80 per cent events are Compton events. Is it possible to take
away these Compton events from the y-rays spectrum? This will increase the (PIT) ratio. The
solution is: put Compton-suppression shields around the Ge-detectors.
Figure 1.I.14 shows the outline of a Compton-suppression shield on a Ge-detector. The figure
shows a y-rays photon interacting with the Ge-detector.

,-- --= =--"'Tlr~---

I
11
Anti-Compton shield I y-photon
I ~ ...,......_,f---+.-:-
1 e - 11
1 Ge 1 1 ___ _
-- - ---' r
Nal cap

Fig. l.l.14. Outline of the anti-Com t h ' Id .

events is ct1·sc d . hp on s ,e surroundmg a Ge-detector. The sequence of
usse m t e text.
 16 Nuciearph
~
Ysie,, iq
accelerator beam . Figure 1.1.14 is the outline of the Berk eley_
BGO ~ ompton-suppression ~hit\
showing a 5 x 5 cm Ge-detector inside. It is actually made of
six coaxially mounted BGO sectio '.·
The figure shows only two of the six photomultiplier ~bes
on the back surface. It also show:·. il
Nal cap on the front , tapering portion. This Nal cap 1s adde
d to sup~ress the ~ 180° CornPt()r: 11 e
scattered y-rays. These y-rays (~ 180°) correspond to Compton
e_dges JUSt below the full-encrgi ~;
photo-peaks and so must be removed from the spectrum; other
wise these Compton edges app..'
precisely where we are interested in having a clean, low-back ' ' h
groun d regio n in t e y-ray spectl'\Jtlll 3d
Figure J.1.15 shows two y-rays spectra of 6°Co taken with
the Berkeley Ge-detector; one (~
with a Compton-suppressed (BGO-shielded) Ge and the
other (B) with an unsuppressed Ct1•
detector. Notice that in spectrum (A), the Compton 'hump'
is almo st not there . The PIT ratir
now improves drastically. For spectrum (A) it is,
·

P :=50 - 60%
T
For spectrum (B) it is ~ 15-20 per cent. The addition of
Nal caps (see Fig. 1.1.14) almoM
wipes out any remaining Compton edge. The response funct
ion of a germanium detector can
thus be seen as drastically improved.
The compactness of BGO shields has made if possible to
pack as many as 21 Compton.
suppressed detectors at a distance of about 14 cm from the
target in the system in operation at
Berkeley.
Let us briefly discuss the tremendous advantage of havin
g such an array of Compton-
suppressed Ge-detectors. It enables us to greatly improve
the resolution of the detector- not a
single detector but the system as a whole. Today Ge-detecto
rs give the highe st resolution possible,
about 2 keV at 1 MeV. Of course, with a single detector
we cannot have more resolution . To
understand this and the effect of more than one Ge-detect
ors, let us define resolution as the
reciprocal of the number of resolvable points. Consider a
range of energy 0- 1 Me V and assume
for the purpose of discussion, a constant resolution of 2 keV.
We thus have 500 resolvable points.
Two y-rays falling on the same point cannot be resol ved.
However, in nuclear spectroscopy, we
are usually not interested in single y-rays but members of
a y-ray cascade; e.g., members of a
rotational band discussed in Chapter 7. If two detectors
are used, we can make use of the
coincidence relationships between the two y-rays (which cann
ot be resolved by a single detector)
with the other members of their individual cascades. This
is shown in Fig. 1.1.16. It is much
Jess prob able that the two pairs of y-rays coincide than the
original two (singles) y-rays.
For two detectors in coincidence we have a two-dimen
sional array of points as shown in
Fig. I.I. I 6, bottom portion.
Noti ce that the 500 resolvable points of the single detector
have now become 5002 points in
the two-dime nsion al array of two coincident detectors.
. .d f a still highe r order yield more effec tive resolution for coinc
Com c1 ence s o ident cascades
reatl increasing the numb er of possible res~lvable point . • le
of y-ray s by g s. For insta nce, a tnp
y . s 003 poss ibl e resolvabl e point s. So there should be
. .d nee would give u 5 as manY
co1nc 1 e 'b l close to the targe t.
Ge-detectors as poss 1 e
 Tools tor Doing Nuclear Physics

With plain Ge-detec tors, as rem arked . 17

. ear 11er 96 to 9 8
·anted garbage m a doubles coincide nce ' per cent of the total events are
un" .
. 11 ave seen that peak to total (P/ 7'\ rat· measure ment w·1th c
,, e ,. J f · ompton-suppresse d Ge-detec tors
10 o over 50 . '
urement therefore 50 per cent of 50 pe . p er cent 1s obtained . In a doub les
111 eas r cent , e 25
. lues. The Table 1.I. 1 by R.M. D iamond (LBL · ·, . p er cent of events are good peak-pea
'a . k
dvantage of usmg Ge-detec tors, it is possible to tab\' preprmt - 202241 s
. , ept., 1985) shows the
a es n,
ish y-cascade s n ght up to a spin ~ 50 by

0
I

Fig. 1.1.1 6. The top portion shows how a single detector cannot resolve two y-rays; they
overlap. The bottom portion shows how they can be resolved in the doubles spectrum
by their different cascadin g partners.

TABLE 1.1
Type (order) of Singles Doubles Triples Quadruples
coincidences Ge1 Ge2 Ge3 Ge4
Unsuppressed Ge 20% 4% 0.8% 0.16%
Peak/Total
Compton-suppressed 50% 25% 13% 6%
Ge Peak/Total
Improvement factor 6 16 39
2.5
Notice that for un su p pressed Ge-detec tors full-ener gy triple coinc idences are only 0.8 per
cent of the total events aking them unusable . On the other hand, the u se o f Compton -
su ' m · · 'd
us~pressed Ge-detec tor g ives 13 p er cent useable triples. Even quad'.u~l e com~1 b
ences can . e·
d. Using such an array of Compto n-suppre ssed Ge-detec tors. 1t 1s possible to establish
 I
Nuclear Physici

18

15¾
2000 Gate: 741 .3 keV

1500
VJ
1=
::,
0
0 1000
Cl
14 z
<(
co
38 + 500

12
1~
,-..
co
a,
36 ' 0
300
(bl
900

co
34 +
15¾
~
32+ Cl
N ~

¥::
Cl CD
10 z
,.... 30 + co
<(

(")
a,
,-.. 29"
28 + (!)
(")
lJ')
,-..
..,;
co
,-..
26 +
co

~
2i 1f26_
8
24 + 25"
>
a,
6 23'" ,._ 22-
>- 22+
(!)
a: IJ') (a)
w co
zw c.o
2r 20-
20+
6

rn+
Hf
(")
Cl
z lf1a-
~l
,._ <!
CD
N
CD
1 15-

4 !i 14-

~
C\i
12+ ~ ~
12-
": oi ~ [:;;
'l,1~ ~ 10-
:q ...
~_.:,.c::e==:::::::;~~~ 8-

~
. N
i -..,.-6_
2 a+
---'----.------ ---~----5 +
M. ,-
ffiTco---- ----- 4 +
U")L~ ~
0 • ~ - - - - - - - 2+
-------- -- ------- 0+ ressed
Fig. 1.1.17. (a) Level scheme of 158Yb using the Berkeley array of 21 Compton-supp
Ge-detectors. (b) Coincidence spectrum in 158 Yb.
 Tools tor Doing Nuclear Physics
19
y-cascade s right up to a spin ~ 50 n, by detecting
y-rays weakest in intensity. Multiple trans itions
(of the same energy) can be unambiguousl y pl~e
lil in the energy level scheme by higher-order
coincidence work . Further, nuclear spectroscopic
stm.11e,-M hi!!h spin are possible. In particula
this enables us to study how nuclei carry angu r,
lar momentum and what are the changes that
take place in shape and collective motion with the
increase in spin.
Thus a new and exciting approach to nuclear struc
ture studies opens up with the advent of
Compton-suppressed Ge-detector arrays. Figure
l .I.17 (a) shows the level scheme of 158Yb
studied by using the Berkeley array . Notice that
a level with spin 38 n is reached. Also , many
y-transitions are multiple. Figure l.I.1 7 (b) show
s a typical coincidence spectrum in 158Yb. The
Compton edges are practically absent.
[Ref: S.B. Patel, et al., Phy. Rev. Lett., Vol. 57,
1 (1986)].
(vi) Cloud and Bubble Cha mb ers
Without doubt these are the most dramatic radia
tion detectors. The basic principle of their
operation is the same: a cloud chamber contains
a super-cooled vapour while a bubble chamber
contains a superheated liquid. These detectors
enable y ou to actu ally 'see ' the path of the
charged part icle and th e even ts taki ng plac
e alon g this path . A simple expansion clou
chamber is sketched in Fig. 1.1.18. It consists of an d
air tight chamber having a large glass window,
so that it can be illuminated and the events can be
seen or photographed . The chamber contains
saturated vapour of a liquid, usually water, with
a little alcohol and the radioactive source. One
wall of the chamber is a mov able piston.
Wind ow

Radioactive material

Battery producing
/ sweep field

Fig. 1.1.18. Expansion cloud cham ber (schemati

c).
If the volume of the chamber is suddenly increased
by moving the piston, the adiabatic
expansion results in cooling and consequent supe
rsaturation of ~apour. If there are i~ns wi~hin
th~ chamber, these provide nuclei for condensation.
A small electnc field of few volts 1s provided
Within the cloud chamber to ' sweep out' any stray
ions which are not of interest (sweep field) .
Clearly the chamber is sensitive for an incident char
ged particle, just before the piston expansion,
and so the ions produced will not have enough
time to get swept away an? the _d~oplets formed
due to condensation will make positions of ions alon
g the path of t?e particle v1S1ble. However,
such a picture gets quickly spoilt as the droplets
move due to gravity and gas turbulence. They
 20 Nuclear Physics
also evaporate. If th . . . .
e piston is th en re
turned to its ongma1 position' it takes about a minut
so for the chamber . e0
to get rea dY ~or another expans10 By applying a mag .
chamber, the curved h . . n.
be ph
ne ti c field B to ther
k nc ident part1c1es can otog d'
raphed and stu 1ed Th'
one to measure the trac s Of t e I d f m this the . 1s enables
radius of curvature ve f
charged particle can r an ro . lo ci ty or energy o the in .
cident
be compute d bY using the relatio n,

--v2
m
=qvB or mv = qBr
r .. . (l .l. 4)
The thickness of th
e track is characte
distinguished from ristic o f the part
those made by elec icle . Alph~ tracks
pressure produces ab trons. On _an ~ver ca n be easily
out 50,000 ion pair age an a- pa rt ic le
only 50 ion pairs pe s per cm 1~ air. O under_ atmospheric
r cm. Since both a- n the other han~,
per ion pair produc an d ~-particles lo .~-particles produc
ed, a-tracks are sh se energy by g1vm e
practised eye, clou or t an d thick, while g up ab ~ut 34 eV
d chamber tracks ~-track~ are lo ng
tracks left by differ du e to different char an ~ thm. To the
ent animals on w ged particles are
very rewarding and et sand . The study o as di ff erent as the
it practically enable f cloud chamber
s us to 's ee ' reactio pi ct ur es has been
When it is required n on an atomic sc
to detect very high ale.
produced by accele -energy particles,
rators, a bubble ch such as co sm ic \cl
liquid instead of a amber is more ad
va rays or those
gas. It was invent nt ageous since it is
chamber is a vessel ed in 1952 by Gla fi ll ed with a dense
filled with a transp ser. In Glaser's ow oi',
particle moving th arent liquid which n w ords: "A bubble
rough it starts viol is so highly superh
along its path." · ent boiling by initi ea te d that an ionising
ating the growth ~u
o f a string o f bubb
To understand the les oil
principle o f a bubb
drink like "Thums le chamber consid
Up". Prior to the op er the bottle o f a Thi
disso_lved in it are en ing o f the bottle, ca rb on at ed soft
in equilibrium. Whe the CO gas ov er oft
solution o f the gas n the bottle is open 2 the drink and that
in th_e _liquid is supe ed, the pressure ge bu\':
and we have the rsaturated. From th ts re du ce d and the
fam1har effervesce is unstable condit ~tt
effervescence. Why nce. By adding ion, bu bb li ng resu
so m e sa lt on e ca lts
is it so? Clearly th n ge t a
by the spe~ks of sa e bu bbles form most ve ry large
lt, so that most o readily on discon
much froth1~g). In f th e CO 2 gas efferves ti nu it ie s provided
m ces almost at on
act as nuclei for th uch t~e same manner, when ions ce (g iv in g rise to
e formation o f sm are produced in a
all bubbles. bu bb le ch am be r
In a bubble chambe they
equilibrium vapour r a superheated li '
pressu,re Th' u·d .
. t q i
particle initiates bu . is crea es an un ts at a temperature and
bble formatio n Th stable co d' t' pressure lower th
chamber is first ke
pt at the equilib . h n 1_1_on an d t he pa an the
d
e super eated cond ssage o f a single
cloud .chamber, is it io n is thus achieved. T he ch ar ge
suddenly lowerednu m pressure and then liquid in the
cham ber ·has beco b 'dl . th
e · •
me sensitive the Y rapi Y movmg pr sure, like m
bac k to its . . a pisto es A the case of the
eq ui ,
librium value The process 1s reversed n. f:' •
and th h lewb m1lh-seconds after the
•
. h _. h . t' d .
wit t e ar~w al time o f the pu . ime .
lse o f highun ng which the ch e c am er pr es sure
photoflash ts used -e ner . b . is broug ht
to illuminate th b am er ts se ns it iv
I .I.19 shows a typi bbl gy particles from e is synchronis. ~d
cal bubble chambe e u es and stereo an accelerator. A
r. · n electronic
scop1c p hotograph
s are recorded. Fi e
gur
 Tools for Doing Nuclear Physics

17
With plain Ge-detectors, as remarked earlier, 96 to 98 per cent of the total events are
wanted garbage in a doubles coincidence measurement. With Compton-suppressed Ge-detectors,
:e ure seen that peak to total (P/ 7) ratio of over 50 per cent is obtained. In a doubles
have
~~ ment therefore 50 per cent of . 50 per cent i.e. ' 25 per cent of events are good peak-peak
values.tagThe Table I .I. I by R.~. _Diam~nd (LBL preprint - 202241, Sept., 1~85) shows the
advan O
e f using Ge-detectors, 1t IS poss, hie to establish y.cascades right up to a spm ~ 50 tr, by

0
I E
E
E I Ey
Eyl

I
--1--
1

Fig. I.I.I 6. . le detector cannot resolve two y-rays; they

portion shows
The top The how a smg h be resolved in the doubles spectrum
overlap. bottom portion shows how t ey can
by their different cascading partners.

TABLE 1.1
Type (order) of Doubles Triples Quadruples
Singles
coincidences Ge3 Ge4
Ge' Ge2
Unsuppressed Ge 4% 0.8% 0.16%
200/4
PeakfTotal
Compton-suppressed 25% 13% 6%
50%

Ge Peakft~ta;l~:.._
~vein,nHactor
------=
_ _ _ ___::::._
2.5 _ _ _ _-::~
6
~==-::;:;-:~~::-:~~ ~~~='.
.
16 39
'dences are only~ 0.8 per
. that for unsuppressed Ge-dee t ctors bl triple comet of c omp
On the other hand ' the .use·ctences
full-energy ton
can be·-
Notice
0
cent f . them unusa e. adruple comet 1· h
the total events makmg ble triples. Even qu . . ·ble to estab is
'
supPressed Ge-detector gives 13 per c ent usea ed Ge-detector ' s t 1s poss
. such an array of C omp ton-suppress
Used· lJsing 1 1
, v

Nuclear Physic:

2000 15¾
Gate: 741 .3 keV

1500
V)

t:
::::,

8 1000
Cl
14 2
<(
CD
3a+
500

12
136'
"":
co
Ol
co
0
300
34 +
co (b)
0
co
I'-.
15¾
11)
32+
in
co C\J """
Cl
10 I'-.
Cl 2
30+ 2
<(
<(
CD
C') CD
Ol 30-
I'-.
2S- C!
2a+ <'?
co
(')
~ (') co
11)
co
I'-.
I'-.
C0 2a-
26+ 2i
8 ....~ .....
C\J
>
Q)
""" 24 +
I'-. co
2S-
Ol ..-
~ N
>-
(.!J
R
cc I'-.
22+ 23-
UJ
2 q:
UJ C\J
I'-.
6 Ol 20+ 21- (a)
C\J
(')
I'-. 20-
(') ~
I'-.
18 + 19"" Cl
2 """
C\J
C\J <( I'-. 1a-

~ ~[16_
co CD

4 -=t'
+ ..,,:
12 1o 14-
C")
2+ '\ co
12-
0)
tO ~ /.S> I:.:' 10-
2 0)
co ~7":~~~~~ a-
5-
-~~----------~-- a+
= I ~· ...... - ----------5+
0 r3 ~
= ------- ~ ~ o,·_ - - - - - -- - -

- -- -2+
4+

- --------- - - - - - - - - 0 +
F
. 1.I. 17. (a ) Leve I sc heme o f 1ssYb using the Berkeley array o f 21 Compton-suppr
1g.
Ge-detectors. (b) Coincidence spectrum in Yb. essed
158
 Tools for Doing Nuclear Physics
19
y-cascades right up to a spin ~ 50 n, by detecting y-rays
weakest in intensity. Multiple transitions
lof the same energy) can be unambiguously pla.ced in
the energy level scheme by higher-order
coincidence work. Further, nuclear spectroscopic studie~-:t
t high spin are possible. In particular,
this enables us to study how nuclei carry angular mom
entum and what are the changes that
take place in shape and collective motion with the incre
ase in spin.
Thus a new and exciting approach to nuclear structure
studies opens up with the advent of
Compton-suppressed Ge-detector arrays. Figure l.I.1
7 (a) shows the level scheme of 158Yb
studied by using the Berkeley array. Notice that a level
with spin 38 n is reached. Also, many
)'-transitions are multiple. Figure 1.1.17 (b) shows a typic
al coincidence spectrum in 158Yb. The
Compton edges are practically absent.
[Ref: S.B. Patel, et al., Phy. Rev. Lett., Vol. 57, 1 (198
6)].
(vi) Cloud and Bubble Chambers
Without doubt these are the most dramatic radiation
detectors. The basic principle of their
operation is the same: a cloud chamber contains a supe
r-cooled vapour while a bubble chamber
contains a superheated liquid. These detectors enable
you to actually 'see' the path of the
charged particle and the even ts takin g plac e alon g
this path. A simple expansion cloud
chamber is sketched in Fig. LI .18. It consists of an air tight
chamber having a large glass window,
so that it can be illuminated and the events can be seen
or photographed. The chamber contains
saturated vapour of a liquid, usually water, with a little
alcohol and the radioactive source. One
wall of the chamber is a movable piston.
Windo w

Radioactive material

Battery producing
/ sweep field

Fig. 1.1.18. Expansion cloud chamber (schematic).

th
If e volume of the chamber is suddenly increased
expansio . by moving the piston, the adiabatic
the cha n results m •
cooling and consequent supersaturatio n of ~apour. /If h
_ t ere are i_·
ons wi_·thin
W .th· mber, these provide nuclei for condensation. A small electnc
field of few volts is provided
Cll lD the c1oud chamber to 'sweep out' any stray 10ns . . .
early the h •
which are not of mter e st (sweep fiie ld) ·
anct c amber is sensitive for an incident charged parti·cle, Just
· b fi
e ore the pis· ton expansion
due tso the ions produced will not have enough time to '
0 get swep t away and the droplets formed
such conct · will
. ensation . make
positions of ions along the path of the parti·c1e visi· "ble. H0 wever
'
a picture gets quickly spoilt as the droplets move due
to gravity and gas turbulence. They
 Nuclear Physics
20
o ri gina l posit ion, it takes abo ut a minu tC Or
also e\·ap orate . If the pisto n is the n retur ned to its · ·
ion . By appl y mg a magn etic field B to th
so for th e cham ber to get ready for anot her ex pans
ca n be photogra phed a nd studi ed . This enab! ,e
cham ber. the curve d track s of the incid ent particles
this the veloc ity or e ne rgy o f the incid e~:
one to m easu re the rad ius of curvature_r and fron~
t10n ,
charg ed parti cle can be comp uted by usmg th e re la
")
m v-
- - = qvB or m v = qBr .. . (l.1.4)
r
the parti cle. Alph a trac ks ca n be easil y
Toe thick ness of the track is char acter istic o f
an aver age an a-pa rticl e unde r atmo sphe ric
distin guish ed from those made by elect rons . On
in air. On the othe r hand , ~-pa rticle s produce
press ure prod uces abou t 50,00 0 ion pairs per cm
s lose ener gy by givin g up abou t 34 eV
only 50 ion pairs per cm . Sinc e both a-an d ~-pa rticle
per ion pair prod uced , a-tra cks are shor t and thick
, whil e ~-tra ck s are long and thin. To the
char ged parti cles are as diffe rent as the
pract ised eye, cloud cham ber track s due to diffe rent
study of clou d cham ber pictu res has been
tracks left by diffe rent anim als on wet sand . The
' react ion on an atom ic scale .
very rewa rding and it pract ically enab les us to ' see
cles, such as cosm ic rays or those
Whe n it is requi red to detec t v ery hig h-en ergy parti
adva ntage ous since it is filled with a dense

D produced by accel erato rs, a bubb le cham ber is more

liquid instead of a gas. It was inven ted in 1952 by
chamber is a vessel filled with a trans paren t liquid whic
parti cle movi ng throu gh it starts viole nt boili ng by
along its path. "
Glas er. In Glas er's own word s: "A bubble
h is so highl y supe rheat ed that an ionising '
initia ting th e g rowt h of a strin g of bubb les 1

cons ider th e bottl e of a carb onat ed soft

To unde rstan d the princ iple of a bubb le cham ber
bottl e, the CO 2 gas over the drink and that
drink like "Thu ms Up". Prior to the open ing of the
is open ed, the press ure gets redu ced a nd the
disso lved in it are in equil ibriu m. Whe n the bottl e
this un stabl e cond ition , bubb ling results
solut ion of the gas in the liqui d is supe rsa turat ed. From
ng some salt one can ge t a ve ry large
and we have the fami liar effer vesc ence . By addi
most readi ly on disco ntinu ities prov ided
effer vesce nce. Why is it so? Clea rly the bubb les form
effer vesc es almo st at once (givi ng ri se to
by the spe~ ks of salt, so that most of the CO 2 gas
are prod uced in a bubb le cham ber, they
much froth1?g) . In much the same mann er, when ions
act as nucle i for the form ation of smal l bubb les .
temp e ratur e a nd press ure lowe r than the
. ~ ~ bubb le cham ber, a supe rheat ed liqui d is at a
cond ition and the passa ge of a sing le charg ed
equ~ bn_~r:1 _vapo ur pressure. This creat es an unsta ble
1 cond ition is thus achie ved. The liqui d in the
parti cle ~trnt es bubb le form ation . The supe rheat ed
then the press ure, like in the case of the
cham ber 1s fust . kept at the equil ibriu m press ure and
ing a pisto n. A few milli -seco nd s after the
cbloudbchahmbebr, is sudd en!~ !owe red by rapid ly mov d
c am er as ecom e sens1t1ve , the proc es s is ·
b k t . ·1.b . rever se and the c ham ber pres sure is brou· ght d
· h th h b · ••
ac o ns equ1 1 num value . The time durin g w h ic . e c am er 1s sens1 t1ve is sync hron ise
with the arriv al time of th e pu1se o f h.ioh-e nergy parti c les f: I .
rom an acce erato r. An elect ronic
phot oflas h is used to illum inat th b bbl
osco pic phot ogra phs are reco rded . Figure
1. I. 19 show s a typical bubb le c~ameb er.u es and stere
 Tools for Doing Nuclear Physics
21

Cameras
A To expansion system

Vacuum tank -~z,:z:. =,=z::z:cz:i;~:i:ip~.zz:z:zl

Nitrogen shield
Nitrogen reservoir
Hydrogen shield --+++- -t-~,

Magnet~
coils -

: Magnet pole piece :

~4 72in --~ ►~

Fig. 1.1.19. A typical bubble chamber.

Glaser's first chamb er contained only a few cm 3 of liquid. The modern bubble
chambers
are huge and very expensive. The superheated liquid is often hydrogen at -245°C
. Sometimes
xenon at -20°C or helium or deuterium is used. Extreme care has to be taken
since hydrogen
becomes explosive when it comes in contact with oxygen. However, hydrogen
has the advantage
of having the chamb er function as proton target. The 12-feet hydrogen bubble
chamber of the
Argonne National Laboratory, USA, contains 20,000 litres of hydrogen. A superco
nducting magnet
produces a field of about 18 kg in the chamber of volume 25 m3 . Because
of the high density
of liquid (compared to gas) a bubble chamber is indispensible in the study of high-en
ergy particles.
The existing bubble chamb ers produce about 35 million photographs per year
and the process
of data evaluation is a complex one employing computers. In 1970, the Argonn
e Laboratory
bubble chamb er record ed the first neutrin o interac tion in pure hydrog
en. Figure l .I.20
schematically shows this remarkable event.

Stopping proton

---
~+meson
Fig. 1.1.20. Neutrino interaction in the hydrogen bubble chamber. A neutrino enters
from right
and interacts with the proton of hydrogen atom to yield a 7t+, a proton and
a µ-.
(vii) Spark Chamber
The spark chamber is based on the simple fact that if the voltage across
two metal plates
~eparated by a distance of a few centimetres is increased beyond a certain
value, a breakdown
m th e form of sparking occurs. The spark chamb er consists of a series of
thin parallel plates
spaced a few millimetres apart, as shown in Fig. l .I.21.
22 Nuclear Pt,-
1/s,ea
Helium-neon gas B
Incoming

-- D-A
---- ----
i---
!'".~'= - -~

A , B, Care
A
-
i--
-n Outgoing
!articles
lJ - ...
C
scintillation
counters
I - High voltage
pulse
I
I --==
Fig. 1.1.21. Spark chamber arrangement.
The first, third, fifth and all other odd-number plates are grounded and the second, founh
sixth and all even-numbe r plates are connected to a high-volta ge source. (A small "clearing':
voltage is always operative.) The high voltage is almost-but not quite-suffi cient to produce a
discharge between the adjacent plates. A 'trail' of ionisation is produced by an incident charged
particle. If the voltage (in a pulse form) is applied in a fraction of a micro-secon d during which
electrons in this 'trai I' remain free (before becoming attached to molecules in the gas) a small
localised spark discharge between each pair of plates will occur along the particle's path. A
photograph will then reveal the trajectory of the incident particle and then collision events or
deflections in a magnetic field can be observed similar to the bubble chamber. The voltage pulse
is quickly removed and the ions are swept by the small field, so that the chamber is ready for
the next pulse. The chief advantage of a spark chamber over a bubble chamber is that it can
be made sensitive for a very short time ( ~ Io~ secs or so). This is because the ions remain
between the plates for a few µ sec, and so the pulse (high) voltage can be applied after passage
of the particle. A spark chamber can thus be triggered.
In Fig. I. I.21, there is one incoming particle giving rise to two charged product particles.
Three scintillation counters A , B and C detect the three charged particles. If the particles pass
through these three counters, an electronic LOGIC circuit can be made to trigger (activate) the
high-voltag e supply (I 0-20 kV). It is possible to apply this pulse within a time interval of less
than 50 nano secs ( 1 ns = 10- 9 s), so that the resu lting sparks can be photographi cally recorded.
The track of this particular incoming particle is recorded and there is not much possibility of
some background particle triggering off the spark track. In this way, rare events and interactions
can be studied without the confusing or misleading background of unimportant events.

1.1.4 PARTICLE ACCELER ATORS

5t
Nuclear detectors and accelerators are to a nuclear physicist what a microscope is to a biologi
and a telescope is to an astronomer. Let us first understand the need to have accelerators for
doing nuclear physics.

Need for an Accelerator of Charged Particles

• ? for
(a) To create a new particle or state of mass m, we need at least an energy £ = mc -
. l 1 n energ)
a state o f mass approxrmate y equa to a proton, for example, we need at least a
of a bout 1000 Me V.
- Tools for Doing Nuclear Physics 23
necessar y for stu d .
( b) High energies are also ymg the structure of nuclear systems. Let us
see how.
The reduced de Broglie wavelen gth of a particle w1'th momentum p 1s. .
given by:

A n
ii. = - = - ... (1 .1.5)
21t p

h
where n= 2 7t , h being Planck's constant.

= 6.582 x 10- 22 MeV-sec . ...(1.1.6)

We know from optics that to see the structure in detail of an object with linear dimensions
d, we must use a wavelen gth compara ble to or smaller than d.

i.e. , . .. (1.1.7)

For this wavelength, the moment um p required must then be,

p~-
n . .. (1.1.8)
d
It is clear that to see the details of very small objects like nuclear particles, high momenta
and thus high energies are needed. For d = 10- m = 1 fm, and protons as probe, it is easy to
15

calculate the kinetic energy required to see linear dimensions of 1 fin is about 20 MeV. Obviously,
we do not have naturally produced beams of particles with such energies; they must be produced
artificially.
Today we have accelera tors producin g beams of charged particles with energies ranging from
6 9
a few MeV to giant machine s giving a few hundred GeV (I MeV = 10 eV, 1 GeV = 10 eV).
Intensities can be as high as 10 16 particles per sec. The beams can be concentrated on targets of
only a few mm 2 in area. The particles that are most often used as projectiles are protons and
electrons.
Let us now consider in brief the principle s of some widely used accelerators.

(i) Van de Graaff Generator

This electrostatic generato r was first built by Van de Graaff in 1931 . In this generator, a charge
Q is transported to one terminal of a huge condense r C. This results in a voltage
Q
V= -,
C
which is used to accelerat e the ions. Figure 1.1.22 shows the main features of a Van de Graaff
accelerator. A voltage of 30 kV is used to spray positive charges on an insulati~g belt made of
rubber, silk, linen or paper. This belt is motor-driven to carry the charge continuously to the
dome-shaped terminal, where it is removed . To spray and collect charges, sharp spray-po ints,
 N uc le ar Physic~
I
24
·ti v e io n s ar e pr
called corona po . ollecror poin . ecti ve ly, are used. p ost l
oduced
ints an d c
ts re sp u.- T be Y ar e ac ce er at e d in
. i:
. P. ro to ns ,
d ar ti cl es . th,
10 n so ur ce .
T be se are usually eu te ro n s, . p
. .
e\·acuated accele
ratmg

Gas supply tor

positiVe ion + +
source

Positiv e io n
so ur ce

+
+
Charge +

\ remover
points
+ Ev ac ua te d
ac ce le ra tio n
tu be

Resist an ce
between
electrodes In te rm ed ia te
+ el ec tro de s
+
+
Spray
points

Charging
be tt

--=
Driving
Deflecting
motor
magnet

Ta rg et
Fig. 1.1.22. Schem
atic diagram o f a Van
de Graaff accelerator.
tube . When this
system is. placed
which the insula in. air, voltages
tion provided b y o f u p to a fe w
arr breaks down. ~ e V ca n b ~ re
filled with an iner If th e sy st em 1s ac h ed , b e y o :
t gas like nitrogen p la ce d m a p re ss u
up to 12 MV an and carbon d io x re ta
d current, up to id e( ~ 5 p er ce nt
ab ou t 10
) at p re ss u re 15
air can withstand 0 µ am pe re s ca at tn ., voltages
stronger electric n b e o b ta in ed .
fields be fo re b re (A t h ig h er pres
The Tandem Van ak d o w n o cc u rs .) sures.
de G ra af f accele

L:::.
gen~rator. Here tw
o insulating co lu
are accelerated to
rator is an in ge
m ns are u se d b ac
energies tw ic e th
ni ou s m o d if ic at
k -t o -b ac k in o n
e en er gi es g iv en
io n o f th e V an d e G
e p re ss u re ta n k
raafl
, so th at tbe_
.

by th e co n v en ti
o n al Van d e Gra
&6
1uv, .... ·-

Negative ion source

Positive high voltage terminal

Positive ion beam

Gas stripping canal
Input negative ions
Target

Fig. 1.1.23. Tandem Van de Graaff accelerator.

Figure 1.1.23 schematically shows the Tandem Van de Graaff accelerator. Note that the
terminal (high, positive voltage) is in the middle of a long pressure tank and the ion source
producing negative ions like H - is at one end. These negative ions get accelerated towards the
central positive terminal, where they enter a gas-containing canal, called stripping canal. Here
the negative ions are stripped of their electrons and become positive ions. The positive ions are
repelled from the positive terminal and go on gaining energy as they go to the grounded region
to hit the target. The total energy gain is therefore twice that of a single-stage Van de Graaff
machine. About 30 MeV protons can be obtained by Tandem Van de Graaff generator.

(ii) The Cyclotron

It is another commonly employed machine for producing high-energy particles, first developed
by E.O. Lawrence and M.S. Livingston in 1931. Figure 1.1.24 schematically shows the path of
a charged particle in a cyclotron.
A short hollow, cylinder is divided into two 'dees'-D 1 and D 2 resembling the letter D. These
<lees are placed between the poles of a large electromagnet (Poles of ~5 ft diameter), so that the
magnetic field is parallel to the axis of the cylinder. (Of course, the dees have to be kept in a vacuum
chamber, which in turn is to be kept between the magnetic poles.) An ion source is kept at the centre
between the dees (usually giving protons). The two dees- D 1 andD 2 are connected to the terminals
of a high-frequency oscillating (A.C.) circuit. This changes the charge on each dee several million
times per second. When D 1 is negative, protons are attracted towards it. Inside D 1, the magnetic
field B makes each proton travel in a circle of radius r, given by:
Ion source

To target
~\
\
\
\
\
\
\

. 1 . I .24. Path of a charged particle in a cyclotron.

F 1g.
 26

Mv2
-=B qv
r
o ce inside the dee, the proto ns (o
. r any
w h ere M and q are mass and charg e of the proto n. n
• . . fl !df, e and as a result move with constant
'
oth er c h arged partic les) are m an electn c ze - ree zon If we now adjust
edge of D1.
speed . After travel ling one semic ircle, the proto n come s to the
the frequ ency of the oscill ator is such ~ way that by the time
the proto n come s to the edge of
so as. to. make D2 negati ve
D1, the poten tial differ ence betwe en D\ and D 2 chang es direct ion
speed will mcre ase due to th
and D positi ve. The proto n will then get attrac ted to D 2 and its
1
accele ration . Once inside D 2 , the proto n\ is in a field- free zone
again and it will now move in :
ant speed in D1)-_ The radius of
circul ar ~ath at c?nst ant speed (high erJha n the prev~o~s co~st
D , the proto n will come at the
the path ID D 2 will be larger. After tra 1ersing a sem1ctrcle ID 2
it will recei ve addit ional energy.
edge of D 2, where , if the direct ion of the\ electr ic field chang es,
radii every time it goes from DI
The proto n will contin ue travel ling in semic ircles of increa sing
to D 2 and from D2 to D 1. I I

a semic ircle (with in the

The impor tant fact is that the time rJ,q uired by the proto n to travel
dee) is independent of the radius of thJ circle.
(semi circle ) with speed v,
Let us verify this. If t is the time req1 ired to travel a distan ce nr
1 nr
t=-
v

Bqr
From Eq. l .I.9, v=- -
M

nr nM
t=--=--
Bqr Bq ... (I.I.JO)
M

Thus by adjus ting the magn etic field B, t can be made the same as that requi red to
ch ange the poten tials of D 1 and D 2.
1 ·
Proto ns gain treme ndous energ y after traver sing throu gh come
near the circum feren ce of the 'dees ' ' an auxili ary electnc . fi lsde':'era rotati ons. When they fr the
ie IS used to defle t th
· c em om
ctrcul ar path to event ually reach a target.
.
The voltag e betwe en D1 and D2 is usual ly I 00,00 0 volts. Whe n a partic le emer ges from the
cyclo tron, due to succe ssive accel eratio ns it a cqmr . f
es an energ y of t
. V. Thus a
comp arativ ely low voltag e is used to get high- e
nergy partic
.
les Th
ens
1· . Me
o
. · . e upper 1m1t of energ y for a
proto n 1s about 22 Me V. This is becau se Eq 1 1 9 . t
· bis hnon-relativiS ic and as the speed of the
partic le increa ses its mass increa ses too . This ·d.is·t ur s t e cyclo tro .
. to remai n i h . n opera tion- the speed does
so as
n p ase with the OS ·u t'
not IDCrease at the prope r rate
. CI a 10ns.
To get some idea of how large the frequ e ncy might be let .
. 0 gauss . ' us calcu late it, for proto n and a
magn etic field of I Wb/m 2 or 10,00
 Tools for Doing Nuclear Physics

V Bq
(J)
(from Eq. l .I. 10)
Frequency f = 27t = 27tr = 21tM

= J Wb/m 2 x 1.6x 10-

19
coul. = 1_52 x 101 cycles
27
2 x 3.14 x 1.67 x 10- kg sec

= _ megacycles or 15.2 MHz

15 2
sec
.
In other words, a radi ofre quen cy sour ce is required

(iii) Synchrotron _B
cyclotron Eqs. l .I.9 and 1.I. l O are non- rela tivistic. As the mas s of the part icle incr e~se s,
The
non- rela tivis tic velo citie s, K.E . of part icle s m
also should be increased to satisfy Eq. l .I. 10. For
a cyclotron is,
2
1 1 B 2 r q2 ... (I.I .II)
K.E. =- Mv =- - ~ = Vq
2
2 2 M
.
ugh whic h the part icles hav e been acce lera ted
where, Vis the effective pote ntia l difference thro

.. . (1.1. 12)

s as the squa re of both B and r. As the

It is clear from Eq. l .I .12 that the energy incr ease the
increases for a fixe d B and q, the requ ired freq uenc y goes dow n and as a resu lt,
mass
of step ' with the acce lera ting volt age.
particles in a fixed frequency mac hine go 'out
irem ent for the cycl otro n if the part icle s are
Figure l .I.25 illustrates anot her imp orta nt requ es
field mus t be shap ed so that if a part icle mov
to be kept together in a beam. The mag neti c
ces a rest orin g forc e. To acco mpl ish this , the
vertically away from a central plan e, it expe rien s
netic force field shou ld get wea ker as the radi us incr ease s. This is show n by curv ed line
mag ral
by the part icle s abov e and belo w the cent
of force in Fig. 1.I.25. The force expe rien ced
plane is also indicated.

Fig. 1.1.25. Th·rs magnetic field produces vertical focussing in a cyclotron. The particles move

in a plane perpendicular to B.
 28
l
Nuclear Physies
. Th~s ~he vertical fo~using requir~m_ent impl_ies that the field must decrease with the radj
which is ~ust th_e opposite of the vanatton required to compensate for a relativistic increase~'
mass. It 1s obv10us from Eq. 1.1.9 that as M, increases, the frequency co(= vl r ) can re ~
constant only if B increases to keep the ratio of B to M constant. It turns out that this appr:in
conflicts with the focusing conditions of the beam. Relativity sets a limit to the maximum ene/h
that can be obtained using a cyclotron, which for protons is about 22 Me V. gy
To reach higher energies, Veksler and independently, McMillan suggested an ingenio
technique in 1945 which uses the principle of phase stability. Let us understand this princip~
somewhat qualitatively as a full picture is beyond the scope of this book.

Phase Stability and Phase Oscillations

Consider a particle circulating in an orbit through a constant magnetic field and crossing a gap
(between the dees) with an applied alternating electric field. Let us assume that the velocity of
the particle is such as to make it cross the gap when the electric field is zero. The particle will
then circulate in this orbit at a constant velocity. The energy, frequency and radius of this orbit
are referred to as sy nchronous and the particle is called synchronous particle.
Suppose now that another particle arrives at the gap a little earlier (at time t ) than a
1
synchronous particle. This is shown in Fig. l .I.26. This particle will clearly gain energy in crossing
the gap. Because of this gain in energy, its angular frequency will decrease (co= Bq/M and so
an increase in M implies a decrease in co) and the particle will next cross the gap at a time 1•
2
which is closer to the moment the synchronous particle crosses the gap. This process continues
and each time the particle comes a little closer in phase to the synchronous particle (t , t , etc.).
2 3
When it crosses the gap in phase with the synchronous particle, there is no electric field.
However, the energy of the particle by now is higher than the synchronous particle and so after
some turns, it enters the decelerating part of the cycle. In this part, the particle loses energy
and hence its angular frequency co increases. It is back in phase with the synchronous particle.
Thus the phase energy and radius of the orbit of a particle oscillate around the equilibriun1 situation
of a synchronous particle.

t
m
-~ ~ ---+-~---1 ------.!...l :>=----+- ---Kl------ -t---~'"=- -
Q)
Time, t
o
a. (or phase
angle)

t,

Fig. 1.1.26. Principle of phase stability, 0 corresponds to the synchronous particle.

.
A group of particles therefore can be carried out to the maximum poss1'bl e ra d'ms in a series.
of phase stable, synchronous orbits, by starting with a frequency co0 = Bqlmo and then slow)1
 cs
't \ Tools tor Doing Nuc1ear t"'nysr
of
~
t the sm all er ~ is ma de , the larger becomes the radius
Note tha
tt\ dec reasing the frequ~ncy. th ke ep mg the ma gn etic field constant and slowl
y
In o er wo rds , by ng
b the pha se stable orbit. th fie ld, the rad ius of the orbit would increase alo
ency of e acc ele rat ing
;)\ decreasing the frequth Th is is the pri nc ipl e of the syn chrocy clotron. We
nc~ of pa rtic les .
\ with the energy of e bu wl y, ke ep ing the frequency constant. In this cas
e
th c field ve ry slo
can also increase e ma gn eti pa rtic les inc rea ses as the radius oscillates slightly
ergy) of the bu nch of
'.~r the momentum (and so en pri nc ipl e of the sy nch rot ron. In each case, the energy
lue. This is the
ir, · around the equilibrium va spo nd ing to the syn ch ron ous orbit), which slowly
d the equilibrium value ( co rre
i. oscillates aroun
increases with time. a constant
ron ov er syn ch roc yc lot ron is obvious. The synchrotron is
The advantage of synchrot rin g to which a magnetic field is ap
plied to
mo ve in an ev acu ate d
. radius machine. The ions pe r rad ius . Fig ure 1.1.27 shows the essential fea
tures
pa rti cle in an orb it of pro .
d~ keep the ch arg ed the repetitive elements are shown
on ly a few of
~ of a synchrotron . Fo r the sake of sim pli cit y

~D C magnet

-:-i:::::l~~L~IN~A~C~:ln~fle~c:
tio:n~~ - - t f - ~Guide magnet
~,A
Ion source
RF .ca vit y '

q:::J
cp
I
Bending magnet \
\
PROTON
AREA ~-
ecting
magnet

Equilibrium orbit

ton sync~rotron.
Fig. 1.1.27. Features of a pro

(iv) The Betatron

ich use s the pri nc ipl e of ele ctr om ag ne tic ind uc tio n as
ce ler ato r wh
Th e betatron is an electron ac an nu lar va cu um ch am be r un de
r a gu idi ng
on vin g in a cir cu lar
the accelerating force. Electr
mo e
eti c flu x tim e va ryi ng lin kin g the ele ctr on 's orbit. Th
d by a ma gn
magnetic field are ac ce ler ate in 19 40 . In the be tat ron ~ the rat e of
inc rea se
bu ilt by D. W. Ke rst
firs t successful ma ch ine wa s are d to the cir cu lat ion frequency. T? e
's orb it is ve ry slo w co mp
Jf the flux lin kin g the electron be gin nin g of the ris ing ma gn eti c field
(se e Fig .
nu ou sly du rin g the
:lectrons are ac ce ler ate d conti fix ed orb it of rad ius r0, a ce rta in rel ati
on
ctr on s are he ld on a
.I.29). To en sur e tha t the ele x kin g the wh ole orb it mu st be
satisfied.
orb it Bo an d the total flu lin
>ern een the fl ux de nsi ty at the
nis relati on is easily deri ve d.
30 Nuclear~
For an electron of linear momentum p moving on a circular orbit of radius ro. we ha\
e,
dp 0 dB
p = B0 , 0e and - = r0e -
dr dr · (I I .

The electromotive force accelerating the electrons is, d$!dr where $ is the total magnl.
flux linked with each orbit.
The effective electric field £, accelerating an electron is given by

d$
Ex 21tr0 = - ... ( l.J.1,
dr
The effective electric force acting on an electron is eE and

eE = dp
dr ... ( I.I.I~

Combining Eqs. l.I.13. 1.1.14 and 1.1.15. we obtain,

d$ = 21tr. 2 dBo
dt O
dr ... (1.1. 16

Integrating Eq. 1.1.16, we obtain the required flux condition,

~<I> = 2mo2 M o ... (1.1. ]7

This condition must be satisfied during the entire acceleration period if the electrons are u
be kept on a constant radius r0 .
An estimate of the final energy in the acceleration period can be made as follows:
Suppose the electrons are accelerated during one quarter cycle of the flux (time interv~
7t/2ro) <I> = $0 sin ro linking the orbit, the average energy gained per orbit during this quarter
period is

ed$
-

- -_ C'\IJ\j'o
"'·""
n 2w
f cos rot dt _ em '+'O-
--- -
th 2
.. .( I.I. ]81
dt O
re /2rn re

During most of their journey the accelerated electrons have a speed close to that of light
However, Eq. 1.1.16 holds for relativistic energies as well as in the non-relativistic range because
the law of force as written in Eqs. 1.1.13 and 1.1.15 satisfies the requirements of special relativil)
with the mass now referring to the relativistic mass mv
of the electron:

mo
mv=g l- -
2

c2

The total distance travelled during the time rc/2ro is nearly crc/2w and each electron makes
 Tools for Doing Nuclear Physics
3'1

C7t/ 2mo = -C- revolutions

2W 4Wl'i)

The final kinetic energy T of an electron is the avera e en . 7 • • " .

by the number of revolutions; hence g etgy gamed per revolution multiplied

T = ec ~o
21tr0 .. .(1.1.19)
for an orbit of radius I 00 ems and peak flux m f I 5
. · 't'O o
b r · .
. we ers, is approximately 100
Me V. The fi~al energy T as given by in Eq. 1.1.19 is independent of the angular frequency ro
of the changing flux. The value of W should not be too small otherwi·se the t,·m ·f 1 ·
. • d d h l . . . , e o acce erat1on
is increase an t e oss of energy by radiation (ignored in the derivation of Eq . .I.I. 19) mcieases.
. .

. .acceleration of the electrons in thei,· orbi't results m ·

· eIec tromagnettc
.As. is known, the radial .
radiation. The rate of radiation as given by classical electrodynamics is

2 4
4 7t-e- ( -ro- )
u= p3
3 r m0 c 2

where P= vie
Substituting the fundamental constants and expressing w, the electron energy in electron volts,
4
u . x 10- (ro/e)
=422 24
2
eV/ sec ... (1.1.20)
r

But one revolution takes 21trlc sec and therefore u = 8.85 X 10~32 ( (J): er eV/revolution.

The radiated energy for a I 00 Me V electron on a I00 cm orbit radius is 8.8 eV/revolution.
The total energy loss during the acceleration cycle can be obtained by integrating Eq. 1.1.20
over the acceleration cycle. If we consider a frequency cycle of 180 cps, the total acceleration
time is 0.0014 sec, and consequently, the total energy loss for a l 00 Me V electron is 0.59 Me V.
Thus about 0.6 per cent of the electron energy is lost in the form of radiation. This energy is
radiated in a continuous spectrum that has a maximum for frequencies near

vm~ =Hm:, r;;

which for the case considered occurs in the visible region, the corresponding light of which has
been observed.
A schematic drawing of the vertical cross-section of a typical betatron magnet and vacuum
chamber is shown in Fig. 1.1.28.