A new approach for the evaluation of the effective electrode spacing in spherical ion chambers

Proper determination of the effective electrode spacing (deff) of an ion chamber ensures proper determination of its collection efficiency either in continuous or in pulsed radiation in addition to the proper evaluation of the transit time. Boag's method for the determination of deff assumes the spherical shape of the internal electrode of the spherical ion chambers which is not always true, except for some cases, its common shape is cylindrical. Current work provides a new approach for the evaluation of the effective electrode spacing in spherical ion chambers considering the cylindrical shape of the internal electrode. Results indicated that deff values obtained through current work are less than those obtained using Boag's method by factors ranging from 12.1% to 26.9%. Current method also impacts the numerically evaluated collection efficiency (f) where values obtained differ by factors up to 3% at low potential (V) values while at high V values minor differences were noticed. Additionally, impacts on the evaluation of the transit time (τi) were obtained. It is concluded that approximating the internal electrode as a sphere may result in false values of deff, f, and τi.