| MadSci Network: Other |
Emma, Solid scintillators have been (and are) used to measure beta radiations. The typical design is a thin plastic (organic) scintillator optically coupled to a photomultiplier tube and associated electronics. Solid scintillators are generally used for higher energy beta particles (for example, emitted from Sr-90), while liquid scintillators are used for assaying isotopes emitting lower energy beta particles (for example, H-3 and C-14). There are couple of excellent web pages that discuss this topic in great detail. The first is found at the Health Physics Society website which is an answer to a question similar to that which you have posed and covers all types of scintillation detection techniques for alpha, beta, and gamma radiations. http://hps.org/public information/ate/q534.html The second webpage that I found on this topic on from Cal Tech in California USA and is actually a .pdf document that covers the topic and your question quite well. http://www.pma.calte ch.edu/~ph77/labs/exp13.pdf I hope you find this information useful. v/r Michael Ford, CHP Chair Texas Radiation Advisory Board
Try the links in the MadSci Library for more information on Other.