Photon energy conversion efficiency in gamma-ray spectrometry

Photon energy conversion efficiency coefficient is presented as the ratio of total energy registered in the collected spectrum to the emitted photon energy. This parameter is calculated from the conventional gamma-ray histogram and in principle is not affected by coincidence phenomena. This feature makes it particularly useful for calibration and measurement of radionuclide samples at close geometries. It complements the number of efficiency parameters used in gamma-ray spectrometry and can partly change the view as to how the gamma-ray spectra are displayed and processed. - Highlights: • Photon energy conversion efficiency as a ratio of registered signal to emitted photon energies. • An efficiency parameter not affected by coincidence phenomena. • Particularly useful for calibration and measurement of radionuclide samples at close geometries. • Suitable mainly for radionuclide assays.