Nuclear tracks: Defect structure of latent tracks, chemical etching and future directions

Defect structure of latent tracks and their chemical etching are basic issues in solid state nuclear track detection and their advanced understanding helps to extend their applications in different disciplines of science and technology. These fundamental issues are analyzed here using computational and experimental investigations proposing physically appreciable models. A brief description of possible future directions for further extension of nuclear track detection technique is also given. Results, discussion and analysis given here present a comprehensive picture of essential aspects of nuclear track detection.