Optimization of measure parameters for an X- and gamma-ray spectrometry portable system

In order to optimize the use of a system for in situ gamma (γ)- and X-ray spectrometry composed of a 3×3×1 mm3 Cadmium Telluride (CdTe) detector with respect to the detection of low-activity radioactive sources, a two level factorial planning was accomplished, involving three factors that could modify the system response. This planning was made with a 137Cs punctual source, analyzing the X-ray energy line of 32 keV from 137mBa. It was concluded that, for the system optimization, the best configuration for the involved parameters was to work with the detector at temperature of −22 °C, shaping time of 3 μs and rise time discrimination (RTD) with value 3.