Speaker
Description
To support the development and testing of detectors for Boron Neutron Capture Therapy (BNCT) and neutron imaging, we have constructed a compact neutron irradiation beamline at the Helsinki Accelerator Laboratory. The beamline includes a movable moderator/reflector assembly made of Teflon, aluminium and lead, which allows shaping the neutron spectrum to enhance specific energy ranges, such as the epithermal energy range suitable for BNCT-relevant studies. Neutrons are produced by irradiating a natural LiF target with protons. The resulting neutron spectra for various proton energies, ranging from 2.0 to 5.0 MeV, and different moderator configurations have been modelled with Monte Carlo simulations using MCNP6, FLUKA and Geant4. The neutron energy spectrum has also been measured with a "single moderator neutron spectrometer", employing spectral unfolding technique, to validate the simulated spectra.
To demonstrate the applicability of the beamline for detector development, we tested a prototype position-sensitive CMOS panel detector designed for neutron detection. The detector features two scintillator sheets based on two different neutron converters, one utilizing Lithium (6Li) and the other Gadolinium (Gd). The efficiency and characteristics of the detector are investigated, and the detector’s suitability for neutron imaging applications is presented.
| Workshop topics | Applications |
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