What is the relation between the atomic number of material, density and radiation detection for semiconductor radiation detectors Lead is considered to be the one of the preferred materials to shield against radiation due to its high atomic number and density. Can the atomic number and density be applied to materials for radiation detectors such as semiconductor radiation detectors as well?

aanpalendmw

aanpalendmw

Answered question

2022-07-18

What is the relation between the atomic number of material, density and radiation detection for semiconductor radiation detectors?
Lead is considered to be the one of the preferred materials to shield against radiation due to its high atomic number and density. Can the atomic number and density be applied to materials for radiation detectors such as semiconductor radiation detectors as well?

Answer & Explanation

jbacapzh

jbacapzh

Beginner2022-07-19Added 18 answers

In very general terms, the density of the material plays a role:
"Semiconductor detectors are essentially solid-state analogs of gas-filled ionization chambers. Because the solid detector materials used in semiconductor detectors are 2000 to 5000 times more dense than gases , they have much better stopping power and are much more efficient detectors for x rays and γ rays."
Comparing it with lead is comparing apples with oranges, as it is the ability to semi-conduct that is important to make a detector. The stopping power necessarily puts a limit, up to what energy, the detector will be reliable.

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