Degradation of silicon detectors under long-term irradiation by 252Cf fission products

Abstract

Abstract The response function of the recoil nuclei in detectors designed for detection of neutrinos or dark matter particles can be determined only through usage of a neutron source with a known energy spectrum. A possible solution for a compact neutron calibration source is a combination of a 252Cf neutron source and a semiconductor detector that detects fission fragments, and thus records the neutron emission moment. This work is devoted to the degradation study of the operating parameters for silicon semiconductor detectors irradiated by fission fragments of the nuclide of 252 Cf. Two types of Si detectors were under investigations - silicon-lithium Si(Li) p-i-n detectors and silicon surface barrier detectors. As a result of the measurements, the maximum permissible radiation doses for the correct operation of both types of detectors and the relation of the received radiation dose to the spectroscopic characteristics of the detectors were determined.