Testing Americium-241 Source with homemade Geigercounter

This video shows me testing my Geigercounter with Americium-241 from a smoke detector. Don't try this at home! :-)

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• geigerzähler
• geiger
• geigercounter
• gm
• gm-zähler
• geiger-müller
• countertube
• counter
• tube
• zählrohr
• hochspannung
• high
• voltage
• radioactive
• tschernobyl
• radioaktiv
• strahlung
• alpha
• beta
• gamma
• radium
• radon
• thorium
• betafit
• uran
• uranoxid
• pitchblend
• pechblende
• americium
• plutonium
• radioactivity
• americium-241

[iHDediting]

@phikre if i wanted one of the geiger tubes from lnd what would i say?

[phikre]

@iHDediting I have no english sample solution for that. But a friend of mine, who lives in the US, also wrote to lnd and got an end-window tube for free. I could ask him for the text he wrote and send it to you. But since you life in Great Britain, i am not sure about if LND will make an intercontinental shipping for free. I actually got my free one from a german company called Vacutec.

You could also go the easy way and buy an LND712 from me, maybe we can arrive at a price

[mdluby10]

Well,it's not only gold that protets the americium it's protected by gold,silver,and polonium and it's actually protective if you think about it considering that americium-241 is more radioactive than wepons grade plutonium.thats probably why it now only emmits alpha and weak gamma radiation.Also how much in all did that geiger counter cost to make?

[phikre]

@mdluby10 The tube was for free, antoher end-window tube i buyed costed me 25€. The electronics is quite cheap, but i think all in all i spend about 50€. It would easy be possible to spend less than that.

[phikre]

@Enriched235 I made it myself. Look at some older comments on this video, i explained how i made it. And it is not lead, it is steel.

[mdluby10]

Well,it's not only gold that protets the americium it's protected by gold,silver,and polonium and it's actually protective if you think about it considering that americium-241 is more radioactive than wepons grade plutonium.thats probably why it now only emmits alpha and weak gamma radiation.

[mdluby10]

Actually the polonium-210 is made in this case by bombarding bismuth with neutrons.

[phikre]

@phikre i use has a thin (45µm) mica window on its front. Mica doesn't block alpha radiation. These so-called end-window countertubes can either be found on ebay or you have to write to a company like LND and ask nicely for a free one as i did.

Good luck on your own geigercounter and feel free to ask more questions!

[phikre]

@mdluby10 The circuit that generates the high voltage and evaluates the signal comming fron the counter tube can be found with google, there are tons of different schematics. The circuit which counts the pulses is composed of three CD4026 ICs, the schematic is in the datasheet.

The basic trick how to measure also alpha radiation is hidden in the workmanship of the countertube. Cheap countertubes are made from thin metall (like the SBM-20) which blocks alpha radiation quite good. But the one

[mdluby10]

Wow! thats a good geiger counter can you tell me how to make one of these? Also does that detect alpha radiation?