Craig Kruschwitz

Monte Carlo simulations of microchannel plate detectors. I. Steady-state voltage bias results.

X-ray detectors based on straight-channel microchannel plates (MCPs) are a powerful diagnostic tool for two-dimensional, time-resolved imaging and time-resolved x-ray spectroscopy in the fields of laser-driven inertial confinement fusion and fast Z-pinch experiments. Understanding the behavior of microchannel plates as used in such detectors is critical to understanding the data obtained. The subject of this paper is a Monte Carlo computer code we have developed to simulate the electron cascade in a MCP under a static applied voltage. Also included in the simulation is elastic reflection of low-energy electrons from the channel wall, which is important at lower voltages. When model results were compared to measured MCP sensitivities, good agreement was found. Spatial resolution simulations of MCP-based detectors were also presented and found to agree with experimental measurements.

Monte Carlo simulations of high-speed, time-gated microchannel-plate-based x-ray detectors: saturation effects in dc and pulsed modes and detector dynamic range.

We present here results of continued efforts to understand the performance of microchannel plate (MCP)-based, high-speed, gated, x-ray detectors. This work involves the continued improvement of a Monte Carlo simulation code to describe MCP performance coupled with experimental efforts to better characterize such detectors. Our goal is a quantitative description of MCP saturation behavior in both static and pulsed modes. A new model of charge buildup on the walls of the MCP channels is briefly described. The simulation results are compared to experimental data obtained with a short-pulse, high-intensity ultraviolet laser, and good agreement is found. These results indicate that a weak saturation can change the exponent of gain with voltage and that a strong saturation leads to a gain plateau. These results also demonstrate that the dynamic range of a MCP in pulsed mode has a value of between 10(2) and 10(3).

Monte Carlo simulations of microchannel plate detectors. II. Pulsed voltage results.

This paper is the second part of a continuing study of straight-channel microchannel plate (MCP)-based x-ray detectors. Such detectors are a useful diagnostic tool for two-dimensional, time-resolved imaging and time-resolved x-ray spectroscopy. To interpret the data from such detectors, it is critical to develop a better understanding of the behavior of MCPs biased with subnanosecond voltage pulses. The subject of this paper is a Monte Carlo computer code that simulates the electron cascade in a MCP channel under an arbitrary pulsed voltage, particularly those pulses with widths comparable to the transit time of the electron cascade in the MCP under DC voltage bias. We use this code to study the gain as a function of time (also called the gate profile or optical gate) for various voltage pulse shapes, including pulses measured along the MCP. In addition, experimental data of MCP behavior in pulsed mode are obtained with a short-pulse UV laser. Comparisons between the simulations and experimental data show excellent agreement for both the gate profile and the peak relative sensitivity along the MCP strips. We report that the dependence of relative gain on peak voltage is larger in pulsed mode when the width of the high-voltage waveform is smaller than the transit time of cascading electrons in the MCP.

Alternative calibration techniques for high-speed pyrometers in shock experiments

Optical pyrometry is widely used in industry and research laboratories to perform surface temperature measurements of sample materials. These shock physics experiments are normally conducted at powder or gas gun facilities or at facilities where high explosives can be used as a shock wave source, and using high-speed pyrometers that are usually calibrated by using a blackbody source. But, electrical power, time, and space can be limiting factors in such facilities, and blackbody calibration can be difficult. Crucial parts of the experimental setup (fibers, lenses, and/or mirrors) are destroyed in such experiments, and the pyrometry system must be recalibrated before each experiment. We have developed a calibration technique using integrating-sphere sources that allows us to calibrate pyrometers more rapidly and easily than with blackbodies. Two different integrating-sphere systems are described to cover the wavelength range generally used in pyrometry studies. The characterization of these systems is full...

Semiconductor Neutron Detectors Using Depleted Uranium Oxide

This paper reports on recent attempts to develop and test a new type of solid-state neutron detector fabricated from uranium compounds. It has been known for many years that uranium oxide (UO2), triuranium octoxide (U3O8) and other uranium compounds exhibit semiconducting characteristics with a broad range of electrical properties. We seek to exploit these characteristics to make a direct-conversion semiconductor neutron detector. In such a device a neutron interacts with a uranium nucleus, inducing fission. The fission products deposit energy-producing, detectable electron-hole pairs. The high energy released in the fission reaction indicates that noise discrimination in such a device has the potential to be excellent. Schottky devices were fabricated using a chemical deposition coating technique to deposit UO2 layers a few microns thick on a sapphire substrate. Schottky devices have also been made using a single crystal from UO2 samples approximately 500 microns thick. Neutron sensitivity simulations have been performed using GEANT4. Neutron sensitivity for the Schottky devices was tested experimentally using a 252Cf source.

Characterizations of MCP performance in the hard x-ray range (6–25 keV)

MCP detector performance at hard x-ray energies from 6 to 25 keV was recently investigated using NSLS beamline X15A at BNL. Measurements were made with an NSTec Gen-II (H-CA-65) framing camera, based on a Photonis MCP with ∼10 μm in diameter pores, ∼12 μm center-center spacing, an L/D ratio of 46, and a bias angle of 8°. The MCP characterizations were focused on (1) energy and angle dependent sensitivity, (2) energy and angle dependent spatial resolution, (3) energy dependent gain performance, and (4) energy dependent dynamic range. These measurement corroborated simulation results using a Monte Carlo model that included hard x-ray interactions and the subsequent electron cascade in the MCP.

Review of current neutron detection systems for emergency response

Neutron detectors are used in a myriad of applications—from safeguarding special nuclear materials (SNM) to determining lattice spacing in soft materials. The transformational changes taking place in neutron detection and imaging techniques in the last few years are largely being driven by the global shortage of helium-3 (3He). This article reviews the status of neutron sensors used specifically for SNM detection in radiological emergency response. These neutron detectors must be highly efficient, be rugged, have fast electronics to measure neutron multiplicity, and be capable of measuring direction of the neutron sources and possibly image them with high spatial resolution. Neutron detection is an indirect physical process: neutrons react with nuclei in materials to initiate the release of one or more charged particles that produce electric signals that can be processed by the detection system. Therefore, neutron detection requires conversion materials as active elements of the detection system; these materials may include boron-10 (10B), lithium-6 (6Li), and gadollinium-157 (157Gd), to name a few, but the number of materials available for neutron detection is limited. However, in recent years, pulse-shape-discriminating plastic scintillators, scintillators made of helium-4 (4He) under high pressure, pillar and trench semiconductor diodes, and exotic semiconductor neutron detectors made from uranium oxide and other materials have widely expanded the parameter space in neutron detection methodology. In this article we will pay special attention to semiconductor-based neutron sensors. Modern microfabricated nanotubes covered inside with neutron converter materials and with very high aspect ratios for better charge transport will be discussed.

High-resolution photon spectroscopy with a microwave-multiplexed 4-pixel transition edge sensor array

We demonstrate very high–resolution photon spectroscopy with a microwave-multiplexed 4-pixel transition edge sensor (TES) array. The readout circuit consists of superconducting microwave resonators coupled to radio frequency superconducting-quantum-interference devices (RF-SQUIDs) and transduces changes in input current to changes in phase of a microwave signal. We used a flux-ramp modulation to linearize the response and avoid low-frequency noise. The result is a very high-resolution photon spectroscopy with a microwave-multiplexed 4-pixel transition edge sensor array. We performed and validated a small-scale demonstration and test of all the components of our concept system, which encompassed microcalorimetry, microwave multiplexing, RF-SQUIDs, and software-defined radio (SDR). We shall display data we acquired in the first simultaneous combination of all key innovations in a 4-pixel demonstration, including microcalorimetry, microwave multiplexing, RF-SQUIDs, and SDR. We present the energy spectrum of a gadolinium-153 (153Gd) source we measured using our 4-pixel TES array and the RF-SQUID multiplexer. For each pixel, one can observe the two 97.4 and 103.2 keV photopeaks. We measured the 153Gd photon source with an achieved energy resolution of 70 eV, full width half maximum (FWHM) at 100 keV, and an equivalent readout system noise of 90 pA/pHz at the TES. This demonstration establishes a path for the readout of cryogenic x-ray and gamma ray sensor arrays with more elements and spectral resolving powers. We believe this project has improved capabilities and substantively advanced the science useful for missions such as nuclear forensics, emergency response, and treaty verification through the explored TES developments.

Simulations of microchannel plate sensitivity to <20 keV x-rays as a function of energy and incident angle

We present results of Monte Carlo simulations of microchannel plate (MCP) response to x-rays in the 250 eV to 20 keV energy range as a function of both x-ray energy and impact angle. The model is based on the model presented in Rochau et al. However, while the Rochau et al. model was two-dimensional, and their results only went to 5 keV, our results have been expanded to 20 keV, and our model has been incorporated into a three-dimensional Monte Carlo MCP model that we have developed over the past several years. X-ray penetration through multiple MCP pore walls is increasingly important above 5 keV. The effect of x-ray penetration through multiple pores on MCP performance was studied and is presented.

Development of a microchannel plate based gated x-ray imager for imaging and spectroscopy experiments on z

This paper describes the development of a microchannel plate (MCP)-based gated x-ray imager developed by National Security Technologies, LLC (NSTec) and Sandia National Laboratories over the past several years. The camera consists of a 40 mm × 40 mm MCP, coated with eight 4 mm wide microstrips. The camera is gated by sending subnanosecond high-voltage pulses across the striplines. We have performed an extensive characterization of the camera, the results of which we present here. The camera has an optical gate profile width (time resolution) as narrow as 150 ps and detector uniformity of better than 30% along the length of a strip, far superior than what has been achieved in previous designs. Reliability and reproducibility of the imager are also greatly enhanced. The spatial resolution is on the order of 40 microns for imaging applications and a dynamic range of between ∼100 and ∼1000. We also present results from a Monte Carlo simulation code developed by NSTec over the last several years. Agreement between the simulation results and the experimental measurements is very good.