April 5th, 2016 - Berkeley Nucleonics is Now Offering 2x2 inch Cerium Bromide (CeBr) Detectors with SAM III Series
Berkeley Nucleonics is now offering 2x2 inch Cerium bromide (CeBr) detectors with its SAM III products (Isotope Identifiers). This is a large improvement in efficiency over the standard 1.5x1.5 CeBr, 1.5x1.5 lanthanum bromide (LaBr) and 3x3 NaI detectors.
BNC is now offering 2x2 inch Cerium bromide (CeBr) detectors with its SAM III products. This is a large improvement in efficiency over the standard 1.5x1.5 CeBr, 1.5x1.5 lanthanum bromide (LaBr) and 3x3 NaI detectors. The new 2x2 inch detector has an increased volume of nearly two and a half times larger than the 1.5x1.5 inch detectors which results in an increase in efficiency over the 1.5x1.5 LaBr and 3x3 NaI detector.
CeBr detectors are available through BNC and have several advantages over lanthanum bromide (LaBr). LaBr is widely accepted as the high-resolution scintillation detector for many years. LaBr boasts 3% resolution at 662 keV (Cs-137) but it also has a strong contamination peak (La-138) near the 32 keV x-ray of Cs-137. There is also a contribution in the region near 1435 keV and contributes to a slightly higher background. CeBr gives a resolution of 4% at 662 keV but this is still good enough to separate the 609 keV Bi-214 from the 662 keV Cs-137 peak (which cannot be done with NaI detectors).
Generally, the resolution in the high energy region of the spectrum is not as important as viewing lower energy spectra of uranium and plutonium. It is the lower energies in which the resolution of CeBr outperforms that of LaBr. This is noted when observing weapons-grade plutonium (The primary Pu-239 peaks 332, 375, 414 keV stand out more clearly with CeBr). Also the X-rays at ~100 keV and the 201 keV gamma line are more pronounced. The low energy lines of weapons-grade uranium are also better resolved with CeBr. At even lower energies the resolution of LaBr continues to fall off dramatically such that Am-241 just displays one wide peak but the resolution of CeBr holds up nicely to separate both peaks (26 and 60 keV).
Visit the company website at http://www.berkeleynucleonics.com or call 800- 234-7858 to discuss your program requirements. Berkeley Nucleonics offers consulting services with Certified Health Physicists and personnel with multiple clearances as required.
About the Company
Berkeley Nucleonics (BNC) was formed in 1963 to commercialize some of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory nuclear instrumentation designs. BNC’s first products were NIM electronics used by nuclear establishments worldwide for R&D and production testing of scintillator detectors and multi-channel analyzers. The company moved into scientific instrumentation in the 1980’s, offering world-leading low jitter timing designs and optical pulse and delay generators. After 9/11, the company expanded its nuclear detection products and services programs to include an accredited training class on the basics of isotope identification and a suite of new instruments for simplified radiation detection. The company continues to provide off-the shelf radiation detectors that are easy to use, yet offer health physics or radiation safety officers with an advanced spectroscopic capability. Our products and services are supported in over 40 countries with expertise in detector materials ranging from costly High Purity Germanium (HPGe) to ultra-simple Geiger Müller Tubes. The SAM systems are available with Sodium Iodide (NaI), Cerium Bromide (CeBr), Lithium (Li6) or Helium-3 (3He).
