Linear, Pulse Shaping Amplifiers for Pulse Height (Energy) Spectroscopy

Linear, Pulse-Shaping Amplifiers for Pulse-Height (Energy) Spectroscopy

For pulse-height or energy spectroscopy, the linear, pulse- shaping amplifier performs several key functions. Its primary purpose is to magnify the amplitude of the preamplifier output pulse from the millivolt range into the 0.1- to 10-V range. This facilitates accurate pulse amplitude measurements with analog-to-digital converters, and single-channel pulse-height analyzers. In addition, the amplifier shapes the pulses to optimize the energy resolution, and to minimize the risk of overlap between successive pulses. Most amplifiers also incorporate a baseline restorer to ensure that the baseline between pulses is held rigidly at ground potential in spite of changes in counting rate or temperature.

Frequently, the requirement to handle high counting rates is in conflict with the need for optimum energy resolution. With many detector-preamplifier combinations, achieving the optimum energy resolution requires long pulse widths. On the other hand, short pulse widths are essential for high counting rates. In such cases a compromise pulse width must be selected which optimizes the quality of information collected during the measurement.

The following sections describe the various techniques available for pulse shaping in the linear amplifier. Each method has benefits for specific applications.


		Home \| Applications \| Contact Us
		Products \| Service \| Training