Germanium detector calibration according to the standard NF M 60–810 without using radioactive sources

In-situ gamma ray spectrometry is used to determine the specific activities of natural and artificial radioactive nuclides in the soil with a good accuracy. This method is very interesting for environmental measurements and lead of soil determination activity. It is a cheaper method than analysis of great amounts of soil samples in the laboratory. As there is not standard soil, detection efficiency can be estimated using either statistical tools or combination of radioactive point sources calibration thanks to mathematical models of NF M 60-810 standard representing the radionuclide distribution in soil. Experimental determination of detection efficiency requires a large number of operations involving the handling of radioactive standards in the energy range from 0.06-2 MeV. For these reasons, detection efficiency model has been determinate without using radioactive sources.