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In experimental particle physics, a particle detector, also known as a radiation detector, is a device used to track and identify high-energy particles, such as produced by nuclear decay, cosmic radiation, or reactions in a particle accelerator.

Description


Detectors designed for modern accelerators are huge, both in size and in cost. The term "counter" is often used instead of detector, when the detector counts the particles but does not resolve its energy or ionization. Particle detectors usually can also track ionizing radiation (high energy photons or even visible light). If their main purpose is radiation measurement, they are called radiation detector, but as photons can also be seen as (massless) particles, the term particle detector is still correct.

Examples and types

Types of particle detectors include:

Modern detectors

Modern detectors in particle physics combine several of the above elements in layers much like an onion.

Installations of particle detectors


At colliders

Without colliders

See also


External articles and references


Filmstrips
  • "Radiation detectors". H. M. Stone Productions, Schloat. Tarrytown, N.Y., Prentice-Hall Media, 1972.

General Information

Particle detectors

Teilchendetektor | Détecteur de particules | Részecskedetektor

 

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the "Particle detector".

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