Lifetime Extension of the Gas Discharge Detectors with Plasma Etching of Silicon Deposits in 80%CF{sub 4} + 20%CO{sub 2}

• Published in: Physics of atomic nuclei Vol. 80; no. 9
• Main Authors: Gavrilov, G. E., Vakhtel, V. M., Maysuzenko, D. A., Tavtorkina, T. A., Fetisov, A. A., Shvetsova, N. Yu
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 15.12.2017
• Subjects: AGING; ANODES; ARGON; BETA SOURCES; CARBON DIOXIDE; CARBON TETRAFLUORIDE; CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND SUPERFLUIDITY; ETCHING; GAS FLOW; INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY; IRRADIATION; LIFETIME EXTENSION; MIXTURES; PROPORTIONAL COUNTERS; SCANNING ELECTRON MICROSCOPY; SILICON; SILICON OXIDES; STRONTIUM 90; SURFACES; WIRES; X-RAY SPECTROSCOPY
• ISSN: 1063-7788; 1562-692X
• DOI: 10.1134/S1063778817090071

A method of elimination of silicon compounds from the anode wire of an aged proportional counter is presented. The aging of a counter with a 70%Ar + 30%CO{sub 2} and a 60%Ar + 30%CO{sub 2} + 10%СF{sub 4} working mixture was stimulated by a {sup 90}Sr β source. To accelerate the process of aging, the gas mixture flow to the counter was supplied through a pipe with RTV coated wall. As a result, the amplitude of the signal decreased 70% already at accumulated charge of Q = 0.03 C/cm. The etching of the silicon compounds on the wire surface with an 80%CF{sub 4} + 20%CO{sub 2} gas mixture discharge led to full recovery of the operating characteristics of detector and an increase in the lifetime. A scanning electron microscopy and X-ray spectroscopy analysis of the recovered wire surface were performed. In accordance with the results, a good quality of wire cleaning from SiO{sub 2} compounds was obtained.