(1976). Nuclear Tracks in Solids (Principles and Applications) Nuclear Technology: Vol. 30, No. 1, pp. 91-92.

Nuclear Tracks in Solids (Principles and Applications)

REVIEW ARTICLE: Superheavy nuclei

Part 1 describes the elements of solid-state nuclear track detectors (SSNTDs) including detector materials (crystals, glasses, and polymers), recordable particles (protons, α-particles, fission fragments, heavy ions, neutrons, and exotic particles), track formation mechanisms, track etching, particle identification, and track measuring instruments. Part 2 describes applications in nuclear physics, astrophysics, cosmic-ray physics, fission track dating and geothermal chronology, medical science, radiation dosimetry, Rn monitoring, environmental sciences, and nanotechnology. Attention is paid to the newly emerged fields: laser acceleration, laser inertial-confinement fusion, nuclear forensics, and safeguards. The internal structure in this chapter is closely linked between materials, particles, and applications; when describing one of these, the other two are introduced. The above structure of this chapter was organized for the benefit of the reader by providing the current principles and techniques together with the broad research fields of application of SSNTDs. Numerous detector parameters and applications are provided. Essential literature references are provided for detailed information on breakthroughs and recent advances.

Solid-state nuclear track detectors

The existence of an island of relatively stable elements beyond the present Periodic Table has been predicted by theoretical extrapolations of nuclear properties. During the past 12 years vigorous efforts have been made to discover these superheavy elements in nature and to produce them by nuclear reactions.

Superheavy-element research

In this investigation, the surface modification of poly vinylidene fluoride (PVDF) and poly methyl methacrylate (PMMA) film induced by air plasma has been investigated using contact angle measurement, electron spectroscopy for chemical analysis (ESCA), and ATR-FTIR spectroscopy. Plasma treatment affects the polymer surfaces to an extent of several hundreds to several thousand angstroms deep, and the bulk properties of the polymer substrate are never modified because of its low penetration range. Plasma surface treatment also offers the advantage of greater chemical flexibility. The plasma exposure leads to weight loss and changes in the chemical composition of the polymer film surfaces. The contact angle of water shows decrease in surface wettability of PVDF and PMMA as the treatment time increases. The improvement in adhesion was studied by measuring T-peel strength. In addition, printability of plasma treated PVDF and PMMA was studied by cross test method. It was found that printability increases considerably for plasma treatment of short duration. Surface energy and surface roughness can be directly correlated to the improvement in the aforementioned surface related properties. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 2009. © 2009 Society of Plastics Engineers

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/pen.21319

Surface characterization of air plasma treated poly vinylidene fluoride and poly methyl methacrylate films

Sequential fission studies in the interaction of 9.03 MeV/N 238U with natU using mica track detectors

Search for superheavy elements in the interaction of 136Xe and 238U with natU using the gas jet transport technique

Heavy ion bombardment of a heat- and chemical-resistant plastic film composed of polyimide (tradename "Kapton" and Du Pont) with subsequent etching makes it possible to produce microsieves. These microsieves are typical nuclear trace filters having well-defined holes. The hole size is freely choosable between 10 nano-m and 50 mu m. The hole size depends on the etching conditions, especially the etching medium, and also on the etching temperature. These nuclear trace filters, composed of polyimide, are said to be very useful in environmental protection under extreme conditions, but also for the ultrapurification not only of gases but also of liquids.

Process for producing heat-resistant and chemical-resistant ultrafinely pored microsieves (hole size d > 10 nano-m) from the polyimide film "Kapton" (tradename of Du Pont)

Metal foils as windows of a gas-jet thermalization chamber at a heavy-ion beam

CR-39 plastic sheets have been tested for their response to protons, deuterons, and alpha particles. The enlargement of the latent damage trail has been studied (a) under varying experimental conditions, and (b) as a function of energy, restricted energy loss, and Z2 crr/β2 of the light charged particles. The critical angles of etching of CR-39 and its response curves have been obtained. Scanning-Electron-Microscopy (SEM) has been employed for studying the profiles of the etched channels.

Reinhard Brandt

Papers

Sequential fission studies in the interaction of 9.03 MeV/N 238U with natU using mica track detectors

Search for superheavy elements in the interaction of 136Xe and 238U with natU using the gas jet transport technique

Process for producing heat-resistant and chemical-resistant ultrafinely pored microsieves (hole size d > 10 nano-m) from the polyimide film "Kapton" (tradename of Du Pont)

Metal foils as windows of a gas-jet thermalization chamber at a heavy-ion beam

Light charged particle registration characteristics of CR-39 plastic track detectors