Uncertainty determination for activity measurements by means of the TDCR method and the CIEMAT/NIST efficiency tracing technique

Karsten Kossert (1) , Ryszard Broda (2) , Philippe Cassette (3) , Guy Ratel (4) , Brian Zimmerman (5)

1 PTB - Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt [Braunschweig]
2 National Centre for Nuclear Research Radioisotope, Centre POLATOM
3 LNHB (CEA, LIST) - Laboratoire National Henri Becquerel (CEA, LIST)
4 BIPM - Bureau International des Poids et Mesures
5 NIST - National Institute of Standards and Technology [Gaithersburg]

Liquid scintillation counting is a very powerful technique for the activity determination of a number of radionuclides. In radionuclide metrology, the TDCR method and the CIEMAT/NIST efficiency tracing technique are widely used in many laboratories. Both methods require rather complex calculation techniques to derive the counting efficiency of the nuclide under study. This article explores the various sources of uncertainty that should be considered when applying these two techniques, and focuses on possible ways to evaluate them. Concrete examples are provided within the paper.

Mots clés: uncertainty determination; liquid scintillation counting; TDCR; efficiency tracing; ELECTRON-CAPTURE NUCLIDES; LS COUNTING EFFICIENCY; LOW-ENERGY ELECTRONS; ACTIVITY STANDARDIZATION; STOPPING POWER; MAGNETIC CALORIMETERS; LIQUID SCINTILLATORS; BETA SPECTROMETRY

Domaines: Physique Nucléaire Expérimentale [nucl-ex]; Physique Atomique [physics.atom-ph]; Instrumentations et Détecteurs [physics.ins-det]

Karsten Kossert, Ryszard Broda, Philippe Cassette, Guy Ratel, Brian Zimmerman. Uncertainty determination for activity measurements by means of the TDCR method and the CIEMAT/NIST efficiency tracing technique. Metrologia, 2015, 52 (3), pp.S172 - S190. ⟨10.1088/0026-1394/52/3/S172⟩. ⟨hal-01864264⟩