Design and characterization of an SRAM-based neutron detector for particle therapy

A neutron detector based on registration of radiation effects in Static Random Access Memories (SRAMs) has been developed at the University of Bergen for applications in particle therapy. Nine different SRAMs were tested and a 16 Mibit SRAM from Cypress was chosen for the final detector. The SRAMs were irradiated in beam lines at PTB Braunschweig, the Oslo Cyclotron Laboratory, The Svedberg Laboratory, The Institute for Energy Technology (IFE, Kjeller) and the CERN-EU high-energy reference field. The results from the measurements demonstrate the feasibility of using the selected SRAMs for neutron detection. The results indicate low or no sensitivity to thermal neutrons while the cross section for fast neutrons increases with neutron energy before reaching a more stable level at energies of several tenths of MeV.