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arXiv · 2401.12034

Unfolding environmental $\gamma$ flux spectrum with portable CZT detector

Taiyuan Liu·Mingxuan Xue·Haiping Peng·Kangkang Zhao·Deyong Duan·Yichao Wang·Changqing Feng·Yifeng Wei·Qing Lin·Zizong Xu·Xiaolian Wang
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Abstract

Environmental $\gamma$-rays constitute a crucial source of background in various nuclear, particle and quantum physics experiments. To evaluate the flux rate and the spectrum of $\gamma$ background, we have developed a novel and straightforward approach to reconstruct the environmental $\gamma$ flux spectrum by applying a portable CZT $\gamma$ detector and iterative Bayesian unfolding, which possesses excellent transferability for broader applications. In this paper, the calibration and GEANT4 Monte-Carlo modeling of the CZT detector, the unfolding procedure as well as the uncertainty estimation are demonstrated in detail. The reconstructed spectrum reveals an environmental $\gamma$ flux intensity of $3.3\pm 0.9\times 10^{7}$~ (m$^2\cdot$sr$\cdot$hour)$^{-1}$ ranging from 73 to 3033~keV, along with characteristic peaks primarily arising from $^{232}$Th series, $^{238}$U series and $^{40}$K. We also give an instance of background rate evaluation with the unfolded spectrum for validation of the approach.

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Taiyuan Liu, Mingxuan Xue, Haiping Peng, Kangkang Zhao, Deyong Duan, Yichao Wang, Changqing Feng, Yifeng Wei, Qing Lin, Zizong Xu, Xiaolian Wang. 2024-01-22. Unfolding environmental $\gamma$ flux spectrum with portable CZT detector. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nima.2024.169315

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