Instrument used to detect radioactivity
Material that emits light in response to charged particles. When charged particles interact with the scintillator, electrons in the atoms in the scintillator become excited. When the atoms return to ground state, their electrons emit photons (light). Physicists can then use this light to 'see' the particles' tracks.
A type of detector which produces a flash of light as the result of an ionizing event. See also photomultiplier tube.
a device that spews out lots of photons when a single photon hits it--a useful thing if you're trying to detect very faint electromagnetic radiation
a material that converts energy lost by ionizing radiation into pulses of light
a material that emits light when it absorbs radiation
A type of detector that makes use of the flash of light emitted by the electrons in an excited atom falling back to their normal energy or `ground' state after having been excited by a passing particle. Used in conjunction with a photomultiplier to produce a measurable current for each `scintillation.' The most common scintillator material is plastic. Another common scintillator material is crystaline Sodium Iodide. Often the scintillators are "doped" by other chemicals to alter the output wavelengths, increase the light output or reduce the light decay time.
material which produces low-energy light (usually optical light) when a high-energy photon interacts with it
Material that emits light when particles traverse it.
A scintillator is a substance that absorbs high energy (ionizing) electromagnetic or charged particle radiation then, in response, fluoresces photons at a characteristic Stokes-shifted (longer) wavelength, releasing the previously absorbed energy. See also Scintillation (physics). Scintillators are defined by their light output (number of emitted photons per unit absorbed energy), short fluorescence decay times, and optical transparency at wavelengths of their own specific emission energy.