MRI: Acquisition of a Broad-Energy Germanium Detector at Western Washington University

该奖项授予西华盛顿大学（WWU），用于购买宽能量锗伽马射线探测器，以扩大环境科学和地质学的研究和教育计划。地球上有许多天然存在的放射性元素，它们会发出伽马射线。通过测量这些元素的数量和分布，研究人员可以估计重要过程的速率，例如沉积物和有机碳的埋藏，海水中污染物的去除，以及重要颗粒物质（包括碳，金属和有机污染物）的混合和运输。该仪器将允许WWU的学生和教师量化沉积过程，描述过去的环境，并评估土地利用，污染和其他自然条件随时间的变化。研究界对使用我们现有的伽马探测器和我们的相关专业知识的兴趣现在已经超过了我们满足需求的能力。该仪器的扩展功能将使WWU的学生和教师能够解决新的环境问题，承担更多的研究项目，改进现有项目的设计，并在全球范围内扩大我们的合作者网络。新的宽能锗探测器（Mirion BE 3825）将支持WWU八名高级人员及其相关学生的研究和教学计划。这些用户都有研究问题，可以解决使用伽马发射放射性核素，与应用范围从生物扰动和沉积物积累到部落沿海蛤蜊园和河口碳埋葬，湖泊古遗传学和河岸地貌发展。虽然我们现有的探测器持续用于测量Pb-210和Th-234等低能伽马发射体，但新的宽能锗探测器还将能够测量Cs-137、Be-7、Zn-65和Fe-59等高能伽马发射体，从而使更多的用户、更多的教育机会和更多样化的仪器应用成为可能。作为一个非博士授予机构，WWU非常重视本科和硕士水平的研究和教育。WWU的新仪器不仅可用于教师驱动的研究，还可用于学生领导的论文研究和班级项目，以培养下一代科学家。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并被认为值得通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估来支持。

This award is made to Western Washington University (WWU) to purchase a broad-energy germanium gamma ray detector to expand research and education programs in environmental science and geology. The earth possesses many naturally occurring radioactive elements that emit gamma radiation. By measuring the quantity and distribution of these elements, researchers can estimate the rates of important processes, such as the burial of sediment and organic carbon, removal of contaminants from seawater, and the mixing and transport of important particulate materials including carbon, metals, and organic contaminants. The instrument will allow students and faculty at WWU to quantify sedimentary processes, characterize past environments, and to assess changes in land use, pollution, and other natural conditions over time. The research community’s interest in the use of our existing gamma detector and our associated expertise has now exceeded our ability to accommodate the demand. The expanded capabilities of this instrument will enable WWU students and faculty to address new environmental problems, take on additional research projects, improve the design of existing projects, and expand our network of collaborators at the global scale. The new broad-energy germanium detector (Mirion BE3825) will support the research and teaching programs of eight senior personnel and their associated students at WWU. These users all have research questions that can be addressed using gamma-emitting radionuclides, with applications ranging from bioturbation and sediment accumulation to tribal coastal clam gardens and estuarine carbon burial, to lake paleo-genetics and riparian geomorphological development. While our existing detector is in continuous use measuring low-energy gamma emitters such as Pb-210 and Th-234, the new broad-energy germanium detector will also enable the measurement of higher-energy gamma emitters such as Cs-137, Be-7, Zn-65, and Fe-59, allowing for a much greater number of users, more educational opportunities, and a greater diversity of instrument applications. As a non-PhD granting institution, WWU places a strong emphasis on undergraduate and Masters-level research and education. The new instrument at WWU will be made available not only for faculty-driven research but also for student-led thesis research and class projects to train the next generation of scientists.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.