Radioisotope Analyzer with Hypersensitive Feature

The radioisotope analyzer device is a handheld instrument that is used for studying and identifying sources of ionizing radiation by processing the signal from the scintillation probe sensor.

A high-voltage low-current power supply is the basis of the design wherein driving the probe and controlling by the PIC32 through PWM is the main purpose. Other components that comprise the system include an SD flash card socket for storing spectrum data, buttons for the user interface, and a graphical display. The scintillation probe is often used for analyzing, storing the data, and producing an energy spectrum graphic output. Based on the location and amplitude of peaks within the spectrum of one component, the users can identify the radioisotope.

The complete system is allowed to be built in a handheld device through the PIC32 which includes sophisticated data-analysis tools featuring a back-propagation neural network where unknown samples are modeled and compared against previously measured samples. For the PIC32 processor to interface with a scintillation probe, the system includes the necessary components. To allow the PIC32 to measure the amplitude of short-duration pulses several times/second, the signal path includes an AC-coupled preamp and peak detector circuit.

Rest of the project