High count rate multiwire proportional counters for Mössbauer spectroscopy

Abstract

The design and construction of multiwire proportional counters intended specifically for high count-rate Mössbauer spectroscopy are discussed. Two ways of improving the counter performance are suggested: (1) Improvement of the field distribution in the counter through the application of field-correcting electrodes, and (2) introduction of drift spaces into the active volume of the counter. Two counters were constructed and tested, one with correction electrodes and one with drift spaces. For the multiwire counter with field-correcting electrodes counting rates of about 1.5 × 10 6 cps were obtained for gas amplification 100 and energy range 3–15 keV. The multiwire counter with drift spaces measured in the same conditions showed a spectrum line shift about three times smaller than that for the counter with correction electrodes. From the point of view of Mössbauer study applications, both these counters surpass the traditional single-anode counter as well as the counter of Semper and Walker.