Physics Procedia最新文献

When high-energy X-ray photons impinge on thick shields, most of the incident energy is absorbed in the shielding material, but some of it is deflected sideways or backward into the treatment room. This effect is important in facilities that have openings in the shields to allow the passage of products through the irradiation zone or mazes to provide access into this zone for operating personnel. Multiple scattering events in these openings can reduce the energies of the photons and the dose rates of the residual radiation to comply with applicable safety regulations. Basic equations and examples are presented to show how these scattering effects can be evaluated in the designs of new irradiation facilities.

We have investigated the accuracy with which the effective atomic number (Z_eff) of an alloy can be measured using the intensity of the thick-target bremsstrahlung produced by low-energy electrons incident on the alloy target. The experiments involved 5 keV-electron beams incident on thick brass, Ni/Fe/Mo, C-276, and stainless steel targets. By comparing the data obtained using alloy targets to the data obtained using a high-purity aluminum target and data from a previous study performed by our group (in which the Z-dependence of thick-target bremsstrahlung was studied), the Z_eff values of the alloy targets were measured and compared to theoretical values. While the experimental Z_eff values of the stainless steel and Ni/Fe/Mo targets were in relatively good agreement with the theoretical values, the experimental Z_eff values of the brass and C-276 targets were not.

Bulk elemental composition measurements of the subsurface of Venus are challenging because of the extreme surface environment (462 ˚C, 93 bars pressure). Instruments provided by landed probes on the surface of Venus must therefore be enclosed in a pressure vessel. The high surface temperatures require a thermal control system that keeps the instrumentation and electronics within their operating temperature range for as long as possible. Currently, Venus surface probes can operate for only a few hours. It is therefore crucial that the lander instrumentation be able to make statistically significant measurements in a short time. An instrument is described that can achieve such a measurement over a volume of thousands of cubic centimeters of material by using high energy penetrating neutron and gamma radiation. The instrument consists of a Pulsed Neutron Generator (PNG) and a Gamma-Ray Spectrometer (GRS). The PNG emits isotropic pulses of 14.1 MeV neutrons that penetrate the pressure vessel walls, the dense atmosphere and the surface rock. The neutrons induce nuclear reactions in the rock to produce gamma rays with energies specific to the element and nuclear process involved. Thus the energies of the detected gamma rays identify the elements present and their intensities provide the abundance of each element. The GRS spectra are analyzed to determine the Venus elemental composition from the spectral signature of individual major, minor, and trace radioactive elements. As a test of such an instrument, a Schlumberger Litho Scanner¹ oil well logging tool was used in a series of experiments at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center. The Litho Scanner tool was mounted above large (1.8 m x 1.8 m x .9 m) granite and basalt monuments and made a series of one-hour elemental composition measurements in a planar geometry more similar to a planetary lander measurement. Initial analysis of the results shows good agreement with target elemental assays.

New approach to organize fluorescent sensor system for determination of metal ions in aqueous solutions was presented. The approach is based on modification of hydrophilic polymer with sensitive fluorescent indicators. Possibility to register Cu2+ ions by analyzing of luminescence excitation spectra and lifetimes of the sensitive coating is presented.

In parallel to the upgrade of neutron imaging facility at TRR-1/M1 since 2015, the practice on image processing software has led to implementation of neutron tomography (NT). The current setup provides a thermal neutron flux of 1.08×10⁶ cm^-2sec^-1 at the exposure position. In general, the sample was fixed on a plate at the top of rotary stage controlled by Labview 2009 Version 9.0.1. The incremental step can be adjusted from 0.45 to 7.2 degree. A 16 bit CCD camera assembled with a Nikkor 50 mm f/1.2 lens was used to record light from ⁶LiF/ZnS (green) neutron converter screen. The exposure time for each shot was 60 seconds, resulting in the acquisition time of approximately three hours for completely turning the sample around. Afterwards, the batch of two dimensional neutron images of the sample was read into the reconstruction and visualization software Octopus reconstruction 8.8 and Octopus visualization 2.0, respectively. The results revealed that the system alignment is important. Maintaining the stability of heavy sample at every particular angle of rotation is important. Previous alignment showed instability of the supporting plane while tilting the sample. This study showed that the sample stage should be replaced. Even though the NT is a lengthy process and involves large data processing, it offers an opportunity to better understand features of an object in more details than with neutron radiography. The digital NT also allows us to separate inner features that appear superpositioned in radiography by cross-sectioning the 3D data set of an object without destruction. As a result, NT is a significant tool for revealing hidden information included in the inner structure of cultural heritage objects, providing great benefits in archaeological study, conservation process and authenticity investigating.

The paper proposes a method for measuring the refractive index of the plane-parallel samples of the material using laser profiler. The method is based on measurement of the displacement due to refraction of the laser beam passing through a sample of known geometry. The developed method was used to measure the refractive index of gallium nitride on the range of optical wavelengths (470, 561 and 632 nm). The measurement error of the refractive index was 10^-3. The experimentally obtained values of the refractive index match with the reference data within measurement error. The relative simplicity of the measurement procedures distinguishes this method.

Knowing the resolution and effective pixel size of an imaging system is essential for dimensional and quantitative measurements. A collection of test devices was developed for neutron imaging that can be used to quantify pixel and voxel size, resolution of the imaging system, and beam divergence. The first set of devices is intended for measurements with radiographs using test patterns or an absorbing edge. For tomography, Al vials were filled with Ti spheres of increasing dimensions in each vial. Ti was chosen since it provides sufficient contrast while the transmission is still guaranteed. The first resolution criterion was to determine from which vial that the spheres can be uniquely identified as spheres. More complex analysis would involve measuring the volume of the spheres or even to compute the edge spread function analogous to the method with the knife-edge for radiographs. For the edge analysis, a larger Ti sphere was considered. Using a sphere for the edge spread function analysis allowed for determination of the resolution in any direction. Images acquired using the different test items are included and methods to perform the analysis required to quantify the resolution from the images are proposed.

A several hundred keV class compact proton microbeam system was developed as a prototype of a 1 MeV compact microbeam system to be used in micro-fabrication and micro-analyses. Optimization of an extraction condition was performed to increase demagnification and to achieve a beam diameter of approximately 1 μm. The beam diameter measurement showed that a diameter of 1.8 μm was obtained. This indicates that the compact microbeam system is a feasible alternative to a MeV class conventional large accelerator system.

We are exploring low-dose proton radiography and computed tomography (pCT) as techniques to improve the accuracy of proton treatment planning and to provide artifact-free images for verification and adaptive therapy at the time of treatment. Here we report on comprehensive beam test results with our prototype pCT head scanner. The detector system and data acquisition attain a sustained rate of more than a million protons individually measured per second, allowing a full CT scan to be completed in six minutes or less of beam time. In order to assess the performance of the scanner for proton radiography as well as computed tomography, we have performed numerous scans of phantoms at the Northwestern Medicine Chicago Proton Center including a custom phantom designed to assess the spatial resolution, a phantom to assess the measurement of relative stopping power, and a dosimetry phantom. Some images, performance, and dosimetry results from those phantom scans are presented together with a description of the instrument, the data acquisition system, and the calibration methods.

The methodical progress in the field of neutron imaging is visible in general but on different levels in the particular labs. Consequently, the access to most suitable beam ports, the usage of advanced imaging detector systems and the professional image processing made the technique competitive to other non-destructive tools like X-ray imaging. Based on this performance gain and by new methodical approaches several new application fields came up – in addition to the already established ones. Accordingly, new image data are now mostly in the third dimension available in the format of tomography volumes. The radiography mode is still the basis of neutron imaging, but the extracted information from superimposed image data (like for a grating interferometer) enables completely new insights. In the consequence, many new applications were created.