ROCKET-BORNE AURORAL X-RAY INSTRUMENTATION.
Abstract
An X-ray detector suitable for inclusion in a rocket payload for X-ray studies must be capable of measuring X-ray flux and energy spectrum between 1 and 10 A. The instrument must also be insensitive to acceleration, temperature changes, vacuum, and a flux of up to 10 to the 8th power electrons/sec sq cm ster having energies from 1 to 50 kev. Three practical types of detectors suitable for rocket flight are energy selective Geiger tubes, scintillation spectrometers, and proportional counters. Geiger tubes which are made sensitive over a relatively narrow range of energies by careful selection of fill gas and window material provide outputs which are easily handled electrically but at the sacrifice of energy resolution. The proportional counter system has the best energy resolution but also the lowest level output and, therefore, requires considerable care in shielding from extraneous sources of electrical noise. Flight systems using scintillation spectrometers and proportional counters telemeter the amplified and broadened pulses directly from the detectors. (Author)
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Feb 28, 1966
- Accession Number
- AD0636530
Entities
People
- L. Carl Howlett
Organizations
- University of Utah