Improving Positron Lifetime Spectra Quality by Suppressing Corrupted Coincidences via Pulse-Height Spectrum Window Adjustments

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Boras, Dominik, Petschke, Danny, Staab, Torsten
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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author Boras, Dominik
Petschke, Danny
Staab, Torsten
author_facet Boras, Dominik
Petschke, Danny
Staab, Torsten
contents Positron Annihilation Lifetime Spectroscopy (PALS) is a powerful technique for detecting microstructural defects in various material classes. In a commonly used 180° detector configuration equipped with plastic scintillators, measurement accuracy is mainly affected by simultaneous detection of 1275 keV and 511 keV gamma quanta in the same detector. This study introduces an optimization approach that significantly improves spectra quality without requiring hardware modifications. By systematically adjusting the upper threshold of the start window in the Pulse Height Spectrum (PHS), this method effectively reduces unwanted 1275/511 piled-up events. Experimental validation with high purity aluminium samples demonstrates that lowering this threshold effectively suppresses corrupted coincidences, yielding extracted characteristic lifetimes closer to those from a 90° configuration. While a reduced upper threshold slightly broadens the instrument response function (IRF) due to an effectively reduced number of scintillation photons, the overall impact on timing resolution remains negligible. This approach enhances the reliability of PALS measurements while still preserving the benefits of a 180° configuration, i.e. high solid-angle efficiency.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2505_02584
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Improving Positron Lifetime Spectra Quality by Suppressing Corrupted Coincidences via Pulse-Height Spectrum Window Adjustments
Boras, Dominik
Petschke, Danny
Staab, Torsten
Instrumentation and Detectors
Nuclear Experiment
Positron Annihilation Lifetime Spectroscopy (PALS) is a powerful technique for detecting microstructural defects in various material classes. In a commonly used 180° detector configuration equipped with plastic scintillators, measurement accuracy is mainly affected by simultaneous detection of 1275 keV and 511 keV gamma quanta in the same detector. This study introduces an optimization approach that significantly improves spectra quality without requiring hardware modifications. By systematically adjusting the upper threshold of the start window in the Pulse Height Spectrum (PHS), this method effectively reduces unwanted 1275/511 piled-up events. Experimental validation with high purity aluminium samples demonstrates that lowering this threshold effectively suppresses corrupted coincidences, yielding extracted characteristic lifetimes closer to those from a 90° configuration. While a reduced upper threshold slightly broadens the instrument response function (IRF) due to an effectively reduced number of scintillation photons, the overall impact on timing resolution remains negligible. This approach enhances the reliability of PALS measurements while still preserving the benefits of a 180° configuration, i.e. high solid-angle efficiency.
title Improving Positron Lifetime Spectra Quality by Suppressing Corrupted Coincidences via Pulse-Height Spectrum Window Adjustments
topic Instrumentation and Detectors
Nuclear Experiment
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2505.02584