FYSS3550 Techniques for Nuclear and Accelerator-based Physics Experiments (10 cr)

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Study level:

Advanced studies

Grading scale:

0-5

Language:

English

Responsible organisation:

Department of Physics

Curriculum periods:

2017-2018, 2018-2019, 2019-2020

Description

Content

Interaction of radiation with matter; principles, construction and operation of radiation detectors; basics of signal processing in nuclear physics experiments; production, separation and manipulation of (radioactive) ions with energies in the eV to GeV range; methods to determine atomic masses; methods in Nuclear Spectroscopy; characterisation of materials with energetic ion beams; basic mechanisms of radiation effects in electronics; radiation environments governing the reliability of electronics

Completion methods

Laboratory work, written assignments, examination

Assessment details

Active participation in the lectures is expected. The laboratory experiments will be carried out in small groups (2-4 persons) and are compulsory. The final grade is based on examination (30 %) and laboratory work and associated reports (70%).

Learning outcomes

At the end of this course, students will be able to operate various radiation detectors used in nuclear and accelerator-based physics experiments, construct measurement and coincidence circuits from modular electronics and acquire spectra using radiation detectors and recognise features of spectra from radiation detectors and relate them to the physical processes causing them. Students will be able to manipulate the trajectories of ions through a recoil separator and compare observations to ion-optical calculations, operate an ISOL-type mass separator and guide an ion beam through the system starting from previous beam line settings and experimentally determine the mass resolving power of a mass separator. They will be able to characterise the composition of thin films of materials using ion-beam techniques and predict the main features of the spectrum from a Rutherford Backscattering experiment based on reaction kinematics and interaction cross-sections. They will also be able to identify different radiation environments affecting electronic systems, diagnose the radiation sensitivity of simple electronic components, differentiate the radiation induced error types in electronics and their physical mechanisms and interpret radiation test data to estimate soft error rates.

Additional information

Given on spring semester, every year starting spring 2018.

Description of prerequisites

Students enrolling to this course are expected to have completed the course Nuclear Physics (FYSS3300).

Study materials

Lecture slides and associated notes; relevant contemporary articles given by lecturers; independent literature searches

Literature

Juhani Kantele, Handbook of Nuclear Spectrometry
W.R. Le, Techniques for Nuclear and Particle Physics Experiments
Glenn F. Knoll, Radiation Detection and Measurement

Completion methods

Method 1

Select all marked parts

Parts of the completion methods

Unpublished assessment item