Comparison of BCF-10, BCF-12, and BCF-20 scintillating fibers for use in a 1-dimensional linear sensor

Abstract

One-dimensional fiber-bundle arrays may prove useful in a number of radiation sensing applications where radiation detection over large areas is needed. Tests have been performed to evaluate the light generation and transmission characteristics of IS-meter long, 10-fiber bundles of BCF-10, BCF-12, and BCF-20 scintillating fibers (Saint Gobain) exposed to collimated gamma-ray sources. The test set-up used one R9800 (Hamamatsu) photomultiplier tube (PMT) at each end, with a high-speed waveform digitizer to collect data. Time constraints were imposed on the waveform data to perform time-of-flight analysis of the events in the fiber bundles, eliminating spurious noise pulses in the high gain PMTs and also allowing 1-dimensional localization of interactions along the lengths of the fiber bundles. This paper will present the results of these measurements including the attenuation coefficients of the three fiber types and the timing resolution (position uncertainty) possible for each fiber bundle when using the R9800 PMTs.