Investigation of thermal neutron detection capability of a CdZnTe detector in a mixed gamma-neutron radiation field

The aim of this study was to investigate the thermal neutron measurement capability of a CdZnTe detector irradiated in a mixed gamma-neutron radiation field. A CdZnTe detector was irradiated in one of the irradiation tubes of a ²⁴¹Am-Be source unit to determine the sensitivity factors of the detector in terms of peak count rate (counts per second [cps]) per neutron flux (in square centimeters per second) [cps/neutron·cm⁻²·s⁻¹]. The CdZnTe detector was covered in a 1-mm-thick cadmium (Cd) cylindrical box to completely absorb incoming thermal neutrons via ¹¹³Cd(n,γ) capture reactions. To achieve, this Cd-covered CdZnTe detector was placed in a well-thermalized neutron field (f-ratio = 50.9 ± 1.3) in the irradiation tube of the ²⁴¹Am-Be neutron source. The gamma-ray spectra were acquired, and the most intense gamma-ray peak at 558 keV (0.74 γ/n) was evaluated to estimate the thermal neutron flux. The epithermal component was also estimated from the bare CdZnTe detector irradiation because the epithermal neutron cutoff energy is about 0.55 eV at the 1-mm-thick Cd filter. A high-density polyethylene moderating cylinder box can also be fitted into the Cd filter box to enhance thermal sensitivity because of moderation of the epithermal neutron component. Neutron detection sensitivity was determined from the measured count rates from the 558 keV photopeak, using the measured neutron fluxes at different irradiation positions. The results indicate that the CdZnTe detector can serve as a neutron detector in mixed gamma-neutron radiation fields, such as reactors, neutron generators, linear accelerators, and isotopic neutron sources. New thermal neutron filters, such as Gd and Tb foils, can be tested instead of the Cd filter due to its serious gamma-shielding effect.