Free Application Note: How Counting Statistics Controls Detection Limits
and Peak Precision

OAK RIDGE, TN, July 23, 2001– The new application note, AN59 How Counting Statistics Controls Detection Limits and Peak Precision, is available free of charge from ORTEC. AN59 examines the contribution of counting statistics to the uncertainty in determining the peak area, and in controlling detection limits. The methodology is applicable to spectrometers that count single events. The results show that it is important to maximize the peak-to-background ratio, the event counting rate, and the counting time.