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BARC Trombay

Definition

Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai. Hosts the Dhruva and Apsara-U research reactors that have historically supplied neutron flux for Indian NAA work.

Related terms

Gamma Spectrometry
Energy-resolving detection of gamma rays. Each radioisotope emits a characteristic gamma at a known energy, which is how NAA identifies elements.
Half-Life
The time required for half the radioactive atoms in a sample to decay. Set by the decay constant lambda through t1/2 =...
HPGe Detector
A high-purity germanium semiconductor crystal cooled with liquid nitrogen to about 77 kelvin. Resolution at the 1,332 keV gamma line of cobalt-60...
INAA
Instrumental Neutron Activation Analysis. The whole sample is irradiated, cooled, and counted directly. No wet chemistry. Non-destructive.
Neutron Capture (N, Gamma)
The reaction in which a stable nucleus absorbs a neutron and becomes a radioactive isotope of the same element, emitting a prompt...
RNAA
Radiochemical Neutron Activation Analysis. After irradiation, the analyst chemically separates the isotope of interest to remove interfering activity. More sensitive, destructive.
Thermal Neutron
A low-energy neutron (around 0.025 eV) that has been slowed by a moderator. The workhorse particle of NAA because slow neutrons are...

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