The dismantling nuclear power plant is expected to continue to change the radiation working environment compared to the operating nuclear power plant. Contamination monitors and survey meters currently in use have limitations in accurate analysis source term and dose rates for continuous changes in radiation fields at dismantling sites. Due to these limitations, the use of semiconductor detectors such as HPGe and CZT detectors with excellent energy resolution and portability is increasing. The CZT detector performs as well as the HPGe detector, but there is no proven calibration procedure yet. Therefore, in this study, the HPGe calibration method was reviewed to derive implications for the CZT detector calibration method. The operating principle of a semiconductor detector that measures gamma emission energy converts them into electrical signals is the same. Two calibrations of HPGe detectors are performed according to the standard calibration procedure for semiconductor detectors for gamma-ray measurement issued by the Korea Association of Standards & Testing Organizations. The first is an energy calibration that calculates gamma-ray peak position measurements and relational expressions using standard source term that emit gamma-rays. The channel values for energy are measured using certified reference source term to determine radionuclides by identifying channels corresponding to the measured peak energy values. The second is the measurement efficiency of measuring the coefficient calibration device, which measures gamma rays emitted from the standard source term. The detector efficiency by sample or distance is measured in consideration of the shape, size, volume, and density of the calibration device. The HPGe detector performs calibration once every six months through a verified calibration method and is being used as a source term analyzer at the power plant. The CZT detector may also establish a procedure for identifying peak positions through energy calibration and calculating radioactivity through efficiency calibration. This will be a way to expand the usability of semiconductor detectors and further monitor radiation in a more effective way.

Concrete is the primary building material for nuclear facilities, making it one of the most common forms of radioactive waste generated when decommissioning a nuclear facility. Of the total waste generated at the Connecticut Yankee and Maine Yankee nuclear power plants in the United States, concrete waste accounts for 83.5% of the total for Connecticut Yankee and 52% for Maine Yankee. In order to dispose of the low- to medium-level radioactive concrete waste generated during the decommissioning of nuclear power plants, it is necessary to analyze the radioactivity concentration of gamma nuclides such as Co-58, Co-60, Cs-137, and Ce-144. Gamma-ray spectroscopy is commonly used method to measure the radioactivity concentration of gamma nuclides in the radioactive waste; however, due to the nature of gamma detectors, gamma rays from sequentially decaying nuclides such as Co-60 or Y-88 are subject to True Coincidence Summing (TCS). TCS reduces the Full Energy Peak Efficiency (FEPE) of specific gamma ray and it can cause underestimation of radioactivity concentration. Therefor the TCS effect must be compensated for in order to accurately assess the radioactivity of the sample. In addition, samples with high density and large volume will experience a certain level of self-shielding effect of gamma rays, so this must also be compensated for. The Radioactive Waste Chemical Analysis Center at the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute performs nuclide analysis for the final disposal of low- and intermediate-level concrete waste. Since a large number of samples must be analyzed within the facility, the analytical method must simultaneously satisfy accuracy and speed. In this study, we report on the results of evaluating the accuracy of the radioactivity concentration correction by applying an efficiency transfer method that appears to satisfy these requirements to concrete standard reference material.

According to the ‘Regulations on the Delivery of Low and Medium Level Radioactive Waste’, Notification No. 2021-26 of the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission, a history of radioactive waste and a total amount of radioactivity in a drum are mandatory. At this time, the inventory of radionuclides that make up more than 95% of the total radioactivity contained in the waste drum should be identified, including the radioactivity of H-3, C-14, Fe-55, Co-58, Co-60, Ni-59, Ni-63, Sr- 90, Nb-94, Tc-99, I-129, Cs-137, Ce-144, and total alpha. Among nuclides to be identified, gamma-emitting nuclides are usually analyzed with a gamma ray spectrometer such as HPGe. When a specific gamma-ray is measured with a detector, several types of peaks generated by recombination or scattering of electrons are simultaneously detected in addition to the corresponding gamma-ray in gamma-ray spectroscopy. Among them, the full energy peak efficiency (FEPE) with the total gamma energy is used for equipment calibration. However, this total energy peak efficiency may not be accurately measured due to the coincidence summing effect. There are two types of coincidence summing: Random and True. The random coincidence summing occurs when two or more gamma particles emitted from multiple nuclides are simultaneously absorbed within the dead time of the detector, and this effect becomes stronger as the counting rate increases. The true coincidence summing is caused by simultaneous absorption of gamma particles emitted by two or more consecutive energy levels transitioning from single nuclide within the dead time of the detector. This effect is independent of the counting rate but affected by the geometry and absolute efficiency of the detector. The FEPE decreases and the peak count of region where the energy of gamma particles is combined increases when the coincidence summing occurs. At the Radioactive Waste Chemical Analysis Center, KAERI, samples with a dead time of 5% or more are diluted and re-measured in order to reduce the random coincidence summing when evaluating the gamma nuclide inventory of radioactive waste. In addition, a certain distance is placed between the sample and the detector during measurement to reduce the true coincidence summing. In this study, we evaluate the coincidence summing effect in our apparatus for the measurement of radioactive waste samples.

HPGe 검출기를 이용하여 밀도가 다양한 환경시료에 대한 정밀 분석시 정확한 분석을 위해서는 밀도보정인자가 필요하다. 밀도에 대한 보정인자를 구하기 위해서 본 연구에서는 몬테카를로 코드인 MCNPX 코드를 사용하여 크리스털의 높이, 지름 및 코어의 크기와 같은 특성이 다른 세 대의 p-type HPGe 검출기를 모사하고 밀도 1 g/cm3의 교정용 표준시료를 이용하여 모 델링을 검증하였다. 검증을 통하여 모델링을 확정한 후 0.3, 0.6, 0.9, 1.0, 1.2, 1.5 g/cm3 밀도를 가진 샘플에 대한 효율을 시 뮬레이션하고 밀도보정인자를 도출하였다. 도출된 각 검출기에 대한 밀도보정인자를 비교하였을 때 전 에너지 범위에서 그 차이가 거의 없음을 확인하였으며 이는 검출기의 크리스털과 같은 주요 특성에 대해 밀도보정인자가 독립적임을 의미한다.

NIPS 시스템은 중성자 핵반응 결과 방출되는 즉발 감마선을 정량적으로 측정하는 장치이며 고체 및 액체 폐기물 중 존재하는 다양한 원소를 비파괴적으로 분석할 수 있는 장점이 있다. 본 연구에서는 NIPS 시스템에 이용된 고순도반도체 검출기의 계측효율을 Ba 및 Eu 방사성 동위원소 선원과 Cl(n, ) Cl 핵반응 시 발생되는 즉발감마선을 이용하여 80 keV에서 8 MeV까지 넓은 영역에 대하여 구하였다. Cl(n, ) Cl 핵반응을 이용한 고에너지 감마선의 계측효율은 즉발감마선의 방사능 값을 정확히 알 수 없기 때문에 저 에너지 영역에서 정확히 알고 있는 검출기 효율곡선에 규격화시켜 전 에너지 영역에서의 효율보정곡선을 구하였다. 또한 KCl 표준용액에 Cf 중성자 선원을 조사시켜 표준용액으로부터 방출되는 즉발 감마선을 고순도반도체 검출기로 측정하고 광대역 계측효율 곡선을 이용하여 수용액 시료에서의 평균 열중성자 속을 예측하였다. NIPS 측정시스템은 주변 재료 물질의 핵반응으로 방출되는 감마선 background를 줄이기 위해 두 개의 고순도반도체 검출기를 이용한 동시계수 장치가 고안되었으며, 동시계수 모드에서의 계측효율도 함께 고려되었으며, 표준선원을 이용하여 전 계수 또는 동시계수모드에서의 background에 대한 측정감도를 비교하였다.다.

게르마늄 결정은 검출에 유용하지 않지만, 광자를 강하게 약화하기 때문에 효율성 저하를 일어키는 불감층을 가지고 있다. 따라서 제조업체가 제공하는 데이터를 검출기 시뮬레이션 모델에 사용하면 계산된 효율성과 측정된 효율성 사이에 약간의 큰 차이가 나타난다. 고순도 게르마늄(HPGe) 검출기의 모양과 치수는 CT 스캔을 통해 몬테카롤롤 시뮬레이션을 위해 형상을 정확하게 형상화하였다. 이 결과 불감층 두께 증가가 효율 감소과정에 미치는 영향을 연구하고자 한다. 불감층의 조정은 50 – 1500 keV의 에너지 범위에서 측정 효율과 시뮬레이션 효율 사이의 ± 3%의 상대편차와 함께 좋은 일치임을 확인하였다. 불감층 두께에 변화를 주어 시뮬레이션 데이터를 비교하였다. 몬테카롤로 시뮬레이션 결과를 실험 결과와 비교하여 새로운 불감층 두꼐를 얻었다. 1.4와 1.6 mm 두께의 End Cap 시뮬레이션 모델에서 1.5mm 두께의 End Cap시뮬레이션 모델에 대한 불감층 두꼐 결과의 차이는 End Cap 치수의 정확성으로 인한 체계적인 오류였다. 통계적 오류와 체계적 오류를 고려한 후, 검출기의 불감충 두께는 1.02±0.14 mm로 도출되었다. 따라서 불감층 두께의 증가는 효율성 감소에 영향을 미치는 것을 확인하였다.

동시 합성 보정 효과는 검출기의 효율이 향상할 때 그리고 선원과 검출기 사이의 거리가 가까울수록 크게 나타나는 것으로 알려져 있다. 점 선원(60Co)을 사용하여 검출기 중심축 방향 및 방사상 방향에서 거리에 따른 변화를 주어 P/T 비를 구하여 동시합성 보정을 하였다. 따라서 본 연구에서는 중심축 및 방사상 방향에서 동시합성 보정한 값들을 혼합부피선원(450 mL CRM source)에 적용하여 P/T에 따른 전체 피크효율 변화를 Geant4과 비교하였다. 또한 검출기와 시료가 아주 밀착된 상태에서 맵핑법에서 구한 효율을 환경시료 중에서 해양 시료인 미역에 적용하여 P/T 비의 적합성을 평가하고자 한다. 500 keV 이상의 효율의 영향을 받는 에너지 영역에 1,836 keV로 보정한 효율을 적용한 결과 측정값과 보정값의 상대오차는 3.2 % peak 효율이 보정되어 잘 일치하였다. 450 mL CRM source처럼 부피가 커질수록 P/T 비는 ± 5%까지 감소하였다. 이것은 검출기로부터 선원이 멀어짐에 따라 방출된 감마선의 산란이 많아지기 때문이며, 이처럼 P/T 변화는 동시합성 보정 피크 효율에 영향을 줌을 확인하였다.

검출기의 자세한 구조를 알고자 CT 스캐닝을 하였으며 크리스털 형상과 사층에 관한 세부적인 구조를 전산모사 계산법을 이용해 재현하였다. 낮은 에너지의 감마선에 대한 피크 효율이 거리가 작아질수록 감소, 보다 높은 에너지(400 keV) 아상에서의 전체 효율성은 검출기 코어를 조정함으로써 불확도를 줄일 수 있었다. PENELOPE 계산법을 이용해 얻은 공간적 의존성 사이에 적절한 일치점이 달성되었음을 확인 하였다. 이는 크리스털 코어, 모서리와 크리스털 코어의 라운딩을 설명해 주는 매개변수들을 조정함으로써 달성되었다.

Odyssey, one of the NASA’s Mars exploration program and SELENE (Kaguya), a Japanese lunar orbiting spacecraft have a payload of Gamma-Ray Spectrometer (GRS) for analyzing radioactive chemical elements of the atmosphere and the surface. In these days, gamma-ray spectroscopy with a High-Purity Germanium (HPGe) detector has been widely used for the activity measurements of natural radionuclides contained in the soil of the Earth. The energy spectra obtained by the HPGe detectors have been generally analyzed by means of the Window Analysis (WA) method. In this method, activity concentrations are determined by using the net counts of energy window around individual peaks. Meanwhile, an alternative method, the so-called Full Spectrum Analysis (FSA) method uses count numbers not only from full-absorption peaks but from the contributions of Compton scattering due to gamma-rays. Consequently, while it takes a substantial time to obtain a statistically significant result in the WA method, the FSA method requires a much shorter time to reach the same level of the statistical significance. This study shows the validation results of FSA method. We have compared the concentration of radioactivity of 40K, 232Th and 238U in the soil measured by the WA method and the FSA method, respectively. The gamma-ray spectrum of reference materials (RGU and RGTh, KCl) and soil samples were measured by the 120% HPGe detector with cosmic muon veto detector. According to the comparison result of activity concentrations between the FSA and the WA, we could conclude that FSA method is validated against the WA method. This study implies that the FSA method can be used in a harsh measurement environment, such as the gamma-ray measurement in the Moon, in which the level of statistical significance is usually required in a much shorter data acquisition time than the WA method.

Based on basic concept of detection limit, sample measurement time & background measurement time was considered, and MDA values according to background measurement time and sample measurement time in land samples(river soil, surface soil, drinking water, underground water, surface water, pine leaf, mugwort) analysis among environmental samples were compared. Seeing the water sample analysis result, it was shown that most of the samples were not detected, and most of the samples in land specimen analysis showed to be below the detection limit of "Ministry of Education, Science and Technology Announcement Je-2008-28-ho", but Cs which is one of artificial radioactive nuclide was detected in some samples. It can be traced back to 1950s and 1960s when nuclear tests were carried out in atmosphere and catastrophic Chernobyl atomic power station accident that caused fallouts in the sky, and this is common level of detection that can be observed worldwide. Seeing the result that the Cs(which is a isotope of Cs, and it has relatively short half life) was not detected in all samples, it can be considered it doesn't affect to the operation of atomic power station.