Nitrogen gas scintillation counter for high-intensity heavy ion beams with negligible radiation damage

Abstract

We developed an N2 gas scintillation counter as a time-of-flight counter for particle identification of radioactive isotope beams. Radiation damage, which often becomes a problem for high-intensity heavy ion beams, can be prevented by a continuous flow of N2 gas. The scintillator, with a volume of 60 mm × 60 mm × 100 mm, was filled with N2 gas at a pressure of approximately 100 kPa. Photons were detected using photomultiplier tubes attached to both sides of the vessel. The main emission wavelength of photons produced in the detector was 300–400 nm. Performance tests confirmed that the detector had sufficient detection efficiency, intrinsic time resolution, and short decay time. Additionally, the detector was demonstrated to be effective for particle identification.