The design, build and test of a digital analyzer for mixed radiation fields

The design, build and test of a digital analyzer for mixed radiation fields is described. This instrument has been developed to provide portable, real-time discrimination of hard mixed fields comprising both neutrons and γ rays with energies typically above 0.5 MeV. The instrument in its standard form comprises a sensor head and a system unit, and affords the flexibility to provide processed data in the form of the traditional scatter-plot representation separating neutron and γ-ray components, or the full, sampled pulse data itself. The instrument has been tested with an americium-beryllium source in three different shielding arrangements to replicate the case in which there are only neutrons, only γ rays and where both neutrons and γ-rays are present. The instrument is observed to return consistent results.