How to detect γ-rays?
like Bruce Banner #1😉
Hello folks. How are you all? I am writing this after a very long time. I have been quite busy lately. Let’s learn today about how to detect γ-rays.
In my earlier stories, I mentioned that γ-rays don't interact too much with materials. You can read more about it here.👇🏻
So, how can we detect these rays if they don’t interact with the materials much? (This line reminded me of neutrinos which are also very difficult to detect. Anyways..😁).
This non-social behaviour of γ-rays makes them difficult to observe.
But this is where the fun starts. Now we are getting to the actual core of the story where we will learn how the γ-rays are detected.
The trick is to use a very high-density material.
Why? You ask! 😦
Well, γ-rays may interact less often with the matter, but they do interact. The probability of interaction is tiny.
What can we do to increase this probability of interaction with the matter?
One way is to increase the quantity of matter. In other words, use a very high-density material containing a huge amount of matter. Very high-density crystals exist which can detect γ-rays.
The γ-rays interact with the electrons in the high-density crystal and transfer their energy to the electrons.
Most of the time, γ-rays transfer a partial amount of their energy to the electrons, but they can also transfer all of their energy to electrons. These highly energetic electrons are then used to detect the presence of gamma rays.
And as you can guess, this is a complicated process. But this is why you follow me, right?
We will look at the subsequent processes of γ-ray detection in upcoming stories.
If you don't follow me, do so for more interesting content on γ-rays and nuclear physics.
See ya soon…Bye…👋
UPDATE: Read the next story here. 👇
