학술논문

Breakthrough in pulse-shape based particle identification with silicon detectors
Document Type
Periodical
Source
IEEE Transactions on Nuclear Science IEEE Trans. Nucl. Sci. Nuclear Science, IEEE Transactions on. 47(3):756-759 Jun, 2000
Subject
Nuclear Engineering
Bioengineering
Detectors
Silicon
Energy resolution
Spectroscopy
Solid state circuits
Telescopes
Data mining
Preamplifiers
Dynamic range
Degradation
Language
ISSN
0018-9499
1558-1578
Abstract
Identification of charged particles is an important method in nuclear spectroscopy. We have achieved a major breakthrough that makes pulse-shape discrimination (PSD) method with a single solid-state detector comparable to and sometimes better than traditional telescope technique. By using rear-side injection in over-biased surface barrier n-type Si detectors made from homogeneously doped n-TD silicon, and extracting the pulse-shape information already at the preamplifier level we have reached improved Z and even A discrimination over a wide dynamic range. Previously good separation with PSD technique required major degradation of time resolution and inferior energy resolution. Currently we have pushed down the dynamical time range to below 35 ns and reached time resolution of about 200 ps fwhm while maintaining good energy resolution characteristic of silicon detectors. The lowest energy threshold for Z separation of intermediate mass fragments (IMF) achieved with a 250 /spl mu/m thick detector is equivalent to a range of about 20 /spl mu/m in silicon. For IMFs with ranges higher than 80 /spl mu/m of silicon we got full isotope separation. Details of this study are presented, and the application of our method in recent nuclear physics experiments is briefly discussed.