Long-term stability of TVO low-temperature sensors before and after gamma irradiation with a high dose

Abstract

The long-term stability of well-known TVO sensors before and after gamma irradiation was investigated during almost 17 years. Five of six sensors, calibrated in the temperature range from 3 to 300 K, were selected according to a requirement of their relative accuracy ΔT/T ≤ ± 0.25% at the cryogenic temperature range. Long-term stability measurements made 7.5 years after calibration are in good agreement with this value at 293, 77.3, and 4.2 K. Then these sensors and the sixth sensor, taken as the “worst” one for comparison, were irradiated by the 60Co gamma source at room temperature up to the total dose of about 1 MGy. Noticeable relative temperature shifts (more than ± 0.25%) are revealed for all the sensors after irradiation, and this fact is explained based on the model of structural changes in the volume of the sensitive element. Post-irradiation measurements carried out during 9 years at 293, 77.3, and 4.2 K indicate good stability of the sensors after irradiation.