Battelle Memorial Institute

Mary Bliss

Richard A Craig

Paul L Reeder

A non-destructive method for quantifying the hydrogen content or a hydrogen-bearing constituent in a material is based on the principle of moderating neutron spectroscopy. This technique is particularly suited for analyzing materials containing the high scattering/capture cross-section element of hydrogen. The method involves exposing a neutron moderator to a beam of radiation comprising neutrons and measuring thermal neutron intensities at a plurality of locations in the moderator. These measured intensities reflect the energy distribution of the beam of radiation incident upon the moderator. Thus, by measuring these intensities with the material present, and comparing these intensities to a model, to those of a composition standard(s), or combinations thereof, the hydrogen content of the material is quantified. Furthermore, the hydrogen-bearing constituent of the material is quantified by knowing or estimating the chemical or molecular structure of the material.

Method to measure hydrogen-bearing constituent in a material using neutron spectroscopy

A method and apparatus for increasing the quantum efficiency of a photomultiplier tube by providing a photocathode with an increased surface-to-volume ratio. The photocathode includes a transparent substrate, upon one major side of which is formed one or more large aspect-ratio structures, such as needles, cones, fibers, prisms, or pyramids. The large aspect-ratio structures are at least partially composed of a photoelectron emitting material, i.e., a material that emits a photoelectron upon absorption of an optical photon. The large aspect-ratio structures may be substantially composed of the photoelectron emitting material (i.e., formed as such upon the surface of a relatively flat substrate) or be only partially composed of a photoelectron emitting material (i.e., the photoelectron emitting material is coated over large aspect-ratio structures formed from the substrate material itself.) The large aspect-ratio nature of the photocathode surface allows for an effective increase in the thickness of the photocathode relative the absorption of optical photons, thereby increasing the absorption rate of incident photons, without substantially increasing the effective thickness of the photocathode relative the escape incidence of the photoelectrons.

Acicular photomultiplier photocathode structure

A non-destructive method for quantifying the hydrogen content or a hydrogen-bearing constituent in a material. Moderating neutron spectroscopy is particularly suited for analyzing materials containing the high scattering/capture cross-section element of hydrogen. A neutron moderator is exposed to a beam of neutron radiation and the thermal neutron intensities at a number of locations in the moderator are then measured. The measured intensities reflect the energy distribution of the radiation beam incident upon the moderator. By measuring intensities with the material present and comparing the intensities to a model, or to those of a composition standard(s), the hydrogen content of the material is quantified. The hydrogen-bearing constituent of the material may be further quantified by knowing or estimating the chemical or molecular structure of the material.

The present invention is an apparatus for detecting ionizing radiation, having: a waveguide having a first end and a second end, the waveguide formed of a scintillator material wherein the therapeutic ionizing radiation isotropically generates scintillation light signals within the waveguide. This apparatus provides a measure of radiation dose. The apparatus may be modified to permit making a measure of location of radiation dose. Specifically, the scintillation material is segmented into a plurality of segments; and a connecting cable for each of the plurality of segments is used for conducting scintillation signals to a scintillation detector.

Scintillator waveguide for sensing radiation

Method of making a scintillator waveguide

The invention is a real time sensor for therapeutic radiation. A probe is placed in or near the patient that senses in real time the dose at the location of the probe. The strength of the dose is determined by either an insertion or an exit probe. The location is determined by a series of vertical and horizontal sensing elements that gives the operator a real time read out dose location relative to placement of the patient. The increased accuracy prevents serious tissue damage to the patient by preventing overdose or delivery of a dose to a wrong location within the body.

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West Richland, WA, United States of America

Mary Bliss