The Sandwich spectrometer for ultra low-level γ-ray spectrometry

The technical details and performance of the newly developed Sandwich spectrometer for ultra low-level γ-ray spectrometry are presented. The spectrometer, which consists of two HPGe detectors, an active muon shield and a lead/copper shield with a convenient and rapid opening mechanism, is located in an underground laboratory at a depth of 500 m water equivalent. The data is collected in list mode, which enables off-line data analysis to identify muon-induced events and possible Ge detector crosstalk due to Compton scattering. The background count-rate from 40 to 2700 keV normalised to the mass of the Ge crystals is 220 day−1 kg−1.