Silicon strip detector with a polyethylene converter as a position sensitive detector for fast neutrons

Silicon strip detectors with converters of neutrons into charge particles can be used as neutron position sensitive detectors. Such detectors are needed, for example, for high energy and neutron physics. The possibility of using the silicon strip detector coated with a polyethylene film for the coordinate determination of fast neutrons has been discussed. Recoil protons produced by fast neutrons in a polyethylene film are registered by the detector. The accuracy of the fast neutron coordinate determination is dependent on peculiarities of the interaction of neutrons with polyethylene and accuracy of the recoil protons registration in the strip detector i.e. energy and angular distributions of the recoil protons and characteristics of tracks produced in the detector. The average charge collected on strips as a function of coordinates of incident neutrons is calculated. It is shown that the most important for the best charge collection and accuracy of the coordinate determination is the choice of the interstrip distance. The other factors influencing on the coordinate determination (distribution of the electrical field inside detectors, ratio of the track length to the interstrip distance, etc.) are discussed.