Measurements of alpha-gamma coincidences with an optimized dual-parameter multichannel system

Measurements of alpha-gamma coincidences have usually been carried out using a single channel to detect alpha-particles of a given energy, and a multichannel analyser for the detection of the corresponding coincident gamma-rays. An alpha-gamma coincidence chamber coupled to the electronic chain ending with a dual-parameter multichannel analyser has been developed and optimized. This system simultaneously stores alpha-particle, gamma-ray, and alpha-gamma coincidence spectra, which allows a general analysis to be made of the degree of coincidence between each alpha-particle and each gamma-ray emission. With this technique, a two-dimensional spectrum was obtained and analysed using “contour graphics”. An application to the study of the decay scheme of 241Am is described.