External beam’s nozzle design for the CRC cyclotron PIXE/PIGE

Abstract

Recently, 13-MeV proton cyclotrons have been applied to non-destructive trace element analytical techniques, such as proton-induced X-ray emission (PIXE) and proton-induced gamma-ray emission (PIGE). A new extended beam line has been designed for PIXE/PIGE measurements in order to deliver protons to the target with minimal losses, thus reducing secondary radiation. A target chamber for PIXE/PIGE measurements is installed at the end of the extended beam line, and the beam size may be optimized by using a series of collimators that are located in front of the target. The optimized proton beam, with low currents (∼nA) for PIXE/PIGE experiments, requires a small beam size with variable energies from ∼10 keV to 3 MeV. Based on the ionization cross-section curve, a 3-MeV proton beam has been determined to be suitable for PIXE/PIGE measurements. Therefore, the 13-MeV protons extracted from the cyclotron must be reduced to 3 MeV, and this is achieved through the incorporation of an energy degrader. The appropriate thickness of the energy degrader has been estimated by using the stopping range in matter (SRIM) program. Also, suitable materials must be used for the construction of the collimator and the energy degrader in order to meet the requirements of low neutron activation due to the application of protons. In this study, we evaluated a number of suitable materials with low neutron yields and with little energy spread as the beam passes through the energy degrader and collimator. The appropriate thickness of the energy degrader for the reduction of the proton energy from 13 MeV to 3 MeV was determined using the SRIM code. Also, the neutron yield at the nozzle was estimated using the MCNPX code.