Examination the cosmic ray muon attenuation by heavy metal alloys

The ability of a muon telescope to detect high dense metal elements was experimentally determined in previous works. Recently, the muon absorption has become one of the most important data in the tomography technique. In the present study, the absorption coefficients of muon at ground level for heavy alloys, namely brass, steel and stainless steel have been successfully recorded. The experiment was performed in Bangi, Malaysia with coordinates of 101.78º E, 2.92º N and elevation of 30 m above sea level. Muon examination was made by muon telescopes contained of two Geiger-Muller detectors. The muon count rate graphs showed an initial increase, followed by a transition depth and then a decrease with the continuous increase of the alloys thickness. The transition points observed were reliable and consistent with the properties of the alloys. The absorption coefficient of brass was higher than the other alloys; therefore, brass could be detected by cosmic ray muons easily. The results confirmed that the larger the mass density of the alloy absorber, the higher the ability to absorb the muon. The attenuation stated by this experiment would be valuable for coming work on muon revealing procedures. (paper)