Abstract
The methodology of the detection of (n, α) nuclear reactions by means of cellulose nitrate detectors is discussed with special reference to the reliability of the quantitative estimates. The discrimination of10B and6Li from the other isotopes is possible by using thin coloured detectors. The ratio of the number of tracks found at the level of a10B or5Li-enriched calibrating sample, and the number expected from theoretical calculation, i.e. the detection efficiency, P is generally below 1. P is fairly sensitive to the experimental conditions, and for precise quantitative measurements it must be determined separately for each different experiment. The gelatin, used for solidification of liquid samples is boron contaminated (almost 1 μmol natural B per g). It has been observed, especially with10B-enriched liquid samples, that part of the stable tracer under study is lost during sample preparation.6Li extra tracks appear at the rear face of “thick”, non-plastic-supported detectors. Boron diffuses in the cellulose-nitrate detectors with the diffusion coefficient of the order of 10−8 cm2·s−1. Therefore it requires rapid operations for microlocation of boron with high resolving power.
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Martini, F., Heurteaux, C., Wissocq, J.C. et al. Quantitative problems in using nuclear reactions and dielectric detectors for the detection of stable isotopes (6Li and10B) in biological samples. Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry, Articles 91, 3–16 (1985). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02036304
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02036304