Development of a D-D neutron spectrum detector based on helium-3 proportional counter

Guoliang Yuan; Zuowei Wen; Lei Feng; Xiaobing Luo; Lingfeng Wei; Jinwen Zhang; Wei Zhao; Qingwei Yang; Yi Liu

doi:10.1063/5.0159707

Development of a D-D neutron spectrum detector based on helium-3 proportional counter

Rev Sci Instrum. 2023 Nov 1;94(11):113503. doi: 10.1063/5.0159707.

Authors

Guoliang Yuan¹, Zuowei Wen¹, Lei Feng¹, Xiaobing Luo², Lingfeng Wei¹, Jinwen Zhang¹, Wei Zhao¹, Qingwei Yang¹, Yi Liu¹

Affiliations

¹ Southwestern Institute of Physics, Chengdu 610225, Sichuan, China.
² Institute of Nuclear Science and Technology, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, Sichuan, China.

PMID: 37921520
DOI: 10.1063/5.0159707

Abstract

Deuterium-deuterium (D-D) neutron spectrum diagnostics in tokamaks are a challenging task with current technologies. To address this issue, we designed and tested a fast and compact helium-3 proportional counter with a diameter of 2.5 cm and an effective length of 15 cm and using Kr as a stopping gas. The detector achieved a resolution of 96 keV for 2.406 MeV neutrons with a pulse shaping of 2 µs. Test results indicate that this detector has the potential to form a D-D neutron spectrometer for tokamaks, composed of detector arrays.