Development of the Segmented Inverted Coaxial Germanium (SIGMA) Detector for Enhanced Gamma-Ray Spectroscopy and Imaging

核物理试图回答一些基本的科学问题，比如“宇宙是如何开始的，它是如何演化的？恒星是如何诞生的？宇宙的基本成分和结构是什么？它们是如何相互作用的？我们如何探索和理解宇宙的极端？”这项研究的目的是开发新技术，使来自英国和国际核物理界的科学家能够调查和解决这些关键问题。将开发一种新型的辐射探测器，Sigma，它将在性能上比目前最先进的系统提供重大进步。西格玛探测器将能够在空间和时间上定位伽马射线相互作用。这些信息将被用来以无与伦比的精确度追踪伽马射线的起始点。该探测器将与AIDA系统一起使用，该系统将探测另一种类型的辐射--β粒子。该系统已经由英国爱丁堡大学和利物浦大学的核科学家以及STFC达累斯伯里实验室的科学家开发。未来的核物理实验将结合来自这两个探测系统的信息，以便利在国际设施收集高质量的数据。这项技术将大大加强这些实验，在这些实验中，一天只产生几个感兴趣的原子核。长期计划是，几个西格玛探测器将作为DESPEC实验的一部分部署在德国的FAIL设施，许多英国科学家将在那里进行他们的研究。在这次实验中，探测器将被用来测量以前从未被观测到的原子核的关键性质，以更深入地了解恒星是如何诞生的，它们是如何演化的。Sigma探测器的开发对STFC UK核物理具有高度的战略重要性，而且是及时的，FIRE设施将于2019年上线。这项研究的次要目标是评估Sigma探测器作为伽马成像系统部署在商业和工业应用中的适宜性。该探测器将彻底改变核退役、安全、环境监测和医学成像等各种应用的性能。例如，在核医学中使用该探测器将通过更早地诊断癌症和神经疾病来提高生活质量和健康。该探测器还可以用于国家安全和国防。例如，它可以用来对皇家海军潜艇上核反应堆乏燃料的伽马射线图进行成像。从这样一个系统获得的数据将被用来为支撑未来反应堆安全设计的模型提供信息。

Nuclear physics seeks to answer fundamental science questions such as "How did the universe begin and how is it evolving? How are stars born? What are the fundamental constituents and fabric of the universe and how do they interact? How can we explore and understand the extremes of the universe?" The aim of this research is to develop new technology that will allow scientists from the UK and international nuclear physics communities to investigate and address these key questions. A new type of radiation detector will be developed, SIGMA, which will provide a major advance in performance over current state-of-the-art systems. The SIGMA detector will be able to locate gamma-ray interactions in space and time. This information will be used to track gamma-rays back to their point of origin, with unrivalled accuracy. The detector will be used alongside the AIDA system, which will detect another type of radiation, beta particles. This system is already under development by UK nuclear scientists at the Universities of Edinburgh and Liverpool and at STFC Daresbury Laboratory. Future nuclear physics experiments will combine the information from both detection systems to facilitate the collection of high-quality data at international facilities. This technique is set to significantly enhance these experiments, where as little as a few nuclei of interest are produced in a day.The long-term plan is that several SIGMA detectors will be deployed as part of the DESPEC experiment at the FAIR facility in Germany, where many UK scientists will conduct their research. In this experiment, the detectors will be used to measure key properties of nuclei that have never been observed before, to provide a deeper understanding of how stars are born and how they evolve. Development of the SIGMA detector is of high strategic importance to the STFC UK nuclear physics and is timely, with the FAIR facility coming online from 2019.A secondary aim of this research is to evaluate the suitability of the SIGMA detector for deployment as a gamma-ray imaging system for commercial and industrial applications. The detector would revolutionise performance in a variety of applications such as nuclear decommissioning, security, environmental monitoring and medical imaging. For example, using the detector in nuclear medicine would enhance quality of life and health through earlier diagnosis of cancer and neurological conditions. The detector could also be operated in national security and defence. For example, it could be used to image gamma-ray maps from spent fuel from nuclear reactors on board Royal Navy submarines. Data acquired from such a system would be used to inform models that underpin the safe design of future reactors.