A theoretical model for the overlapping effect in solid state nuclear track detectors

Solid state nuclear track detectors (SSNTD) are commonly deployed in many scientific and technological fields due to their low cost and relatively easy handling. In general, SSNTD response is considered to be linear, with exposure and efficiency supposedly constant across the entire exposure range, but in reality this response varies at high exposure levels, and efficiency diminishes as exposure rises. In high exposure measurements, this phenomenon results in an underestimation of the exposure levels and the results obtained must be treated with caution. To explain this phenomenon, this work establishes a theoretical model based on the track overlapping. Furthermore, an algorithm based on the Monte Carlo method has been used to obtain numerical results and a set of around 40 SSNTD has been exposed to three different exposure levels to validate this model. It has been demonstrated that overlapping efficiency is a linear function of the real exposure. The slope depends on the surface of the tracks, the resolution of the counting system and the reference efficiency for low exposures. The initial offset can be associated to the track background that reduces the overlapped efficiency. The recorded exposure can be modeled as a quadratic function of the real exposure without initial offset. As a result, the experimental data have been fitted to second order polynomial functions and the detectors parameters have been obtained. If detector parameters such as reference efficiency and track radio are known, the model can reliably predict the overlapping effect and enable the correction of the solid state track detector measurements. These results could also be extended to other SSNTD applications. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.