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Related Concept Videos

Radioactive Decay and Radiometric Dating02:48

Radioactive Decay and Radiometric Dating

Radioactivity is a spontaneous disintegration of an unstable nuclide and is a random process, as all the nuclei in the sample do not decay simultaneously. The number of disintegrations per unit time is called the activity (A), which is directly proportional to the number of nuclei in the sample. The decay constant (λ) is an average probability of decay per nucleus in unit time.
Types of Radioactivity03:23

Types of Radioactivity

The most common types of radioactivity are α decay, β decay, γ decay, neutron emission, and electron capture.
Alpha (α) decay is the emission of an α particle from the nucleus. For example, polonium-210 undergoes α decay:
NMR Spectrometers: Resolution and Error Correction01:14

NMR Spectrometers: Resolution and Error Correction

When magnetic nuclei in a sample achieve resonance and undergo relaxation, the signal detected in NMR is an approximately exponential free induction decay. Fourier transform of an exponential decay yields a Lorentzian peak in the frequency domain. Lorentzian peaks in an NMR spectrum are defined by their amplitude, full width at half maximum, and position, where the peak width is governed by the spin-spin relaxation time alone. In real experiments, however, the applied magnetic field is rendered...
Radioactivity and Nuclear Equations03:18

Radioactivity and Nuclear Equations

Nuclear chemistry is the study of reactions that involve changes in nuclear structure. The nucleus of an atom is composed of protons and, except for hydrogen, neutrons. The number of protons in the nucleus is called the atomic number (Z) of the element, and the sum of the number of protons and the number of neutrons is the mass number (A). Atoms with the same atomic number but different mass numbers are isotopes of the same element.
A nuclide of an element has a specific number of protons and...
Nuclear Stability03:18

Nuclear Stability

Protons and neutrons, collectively called nucleons, are packed together tightly in a nucleus. With a radius of about 10−15 meters, a nucleus is quite small compared to the radius of the entire atom, which is about 10−10 meters. Nuclei are extremely dense compared to bulk matter, averaging 1.8 × 1014 grams per cubic centimeter. If the earth’s density were equal to the average nuclear density, the earth’s radius would be only about 200 meters.
To hold positively charged protons together in the...
¹³C NMR: ¹H–¹³C Decoupling01:04

¹³C NMR: ¹H–¹³C Decoupling

The probability of having two carbon-13 atoms next to each other is negligible because of the low natural abundance of carbon-13. Consequently, peak splitting due to carbon-carbon spin-spin coupling is not observed in spectra. However, protons up to three sigma bonds away split the carbon signal according to the n+1 rule, resulting in complicated spectra.
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Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 21, 2026

Continuous Blood Sampling in Small Animal Positron Emission Tomography/Computed Tomography Enables the Measurement of the Arterial Input Function
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Continuous Blood Sampling in Small Animal Positron Emission Tomography/Computed Tomography Enables the Measurement of the Arterial Input Function

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Correction for decay during counting in gamma spectrometry.

Y Nir-El1

  • 1Soreq Nuclear Research Center, Yavne 81800, Israel. nirel@soreq.gov.il

Radiation Protection Dosimetry
|June 22, 2012
PubMed
Summary

Accurate gamma spectrometry requires using live time, not real-time, for decay corrections. Using real-time leads to underestimation of the count rate, especially with high dead-time (DT) nuclides.

Area of Science:

  • Nuclear Physics
  • Analytical Chemistry
  • Spectroscopy

Background:

  • Gamma spectrometry is crucial for quantifying radioactive isotopes.
  • Accurate count rate determination requires corrections for radioactive decay.
  • Dead-time (DT) in detectors affects measurement accuracy.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To highlight the importance of using correct time measurements in gamma spectrometry.
  • To explain the error introduced by using real-time instead of live-time for decay correction.
  • To emphasize the impact of dead-time on count rate accuracy.

Main Methods:

  • Theoretical analysis of count rate correction factors in gamma spectrometry.
  • Integration of count rate over time to derive correction factors.

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Published on: January 30, 2020

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Last Updated: May 21, 2026

Continuous Blood Sampling in Small Animal Positron Emission Tomography/Computed Tomography Enables the Measurement of the Arterial Input Function
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Visualization of Low-Level Gamma Radiation Sources Using a Low-Cost, High-Sensitivity, Omnidirectional Compton Camera
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  • Comparison of live-time versus real-time calculations.

    • Main Results:

    • Using live-time is essential for accurate decay correction in gamma spectrometry.
    • Real-time measurements lead to an underestimation of the true count rate.
    • This underestimation is significant for nuclides with high dead-time (DT).

    Conclusions:

    • The correct application of live-time is critical for precise gamma-ray quantification.
    • Failure to use live-time introduces systematic errors in count rate determination.
    • The methodology is not suitable for systems with zero dead-time correction.