Tail pulse generators simulate the outputs of
radiation detectors,
photomultiplier A photomultiplier is a device that converts incident photons into an electrical signal.
Kinds of photomultiplier include:
* Photomultiplier tube, a vacuum tube converting incident photons into an electric signal. Photomultiplier tubes (PMTs for s ...
tubes (PMT's) and their electronics. They in turn test systems and components for linearity, stability, resolution, pile-up and count rate effects. Tail pulse generators are differentiated from standard logic pulse generators in that the rise and fall times are exponential.
These simulate the outputs of Germanium detectors, plastic scintillators and their PMT's, NaI scintillators and their PMT's and LaBr3/LaCl3 scintillators and their PMT's. The random tail-pulse generators can test for pile-up and count rate effects. The fast tail-pulse generators can simulate the 5 ns
FWHM
In a distribution, full width at half maximum (FWHM) is the difference between the two values of the independent variable at which the dependent variable is equal to half of its maximum value. In other words, it is the width of a spectrum curve mea ...
pulses of faster PMT outputs. The precision tail-pulse generators can test linearity, stability and resolution.
References
* IEEE Test Procedure of Amplifiers and Preamplifiers for Semiconductor Radiation Detectors IEEE Std 301-1969 ANSI N42.2 1969
* Radiation Measurement Pulse Mode: http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/1357248/radiation-measurement/80696/Pulse-mode#ref=ref620766
* A random tail-pulse generator http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/Xplore/login.jsp?url=/iel5/23/4326872/04326909.pdf?arnumber=4326909
* Plastic Scintillators and Fast Pulse Techniques http://www.pma.caltech.edu/~ph77/labs/exp13.html
Electronic test equipment
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