The bulk-etch thickness for the formation of etched through tracks in CR-39 detectors as a tool for nuclear spectrometry: a computational study

The bulk-etch thickness which is removed from a single surface of CR-39 nuclear track detectors for the formation of etched through tracks has been calculated using various charged particles with ranges greater than the particle's trajectory in the detector. An attempt is made to explore the possibility of making use of the bulk-etch thickness at the moment of perforation for energy spectroscopy and particle identification. In the calculations track development kinetics were used for varying track etch rate ratio V. The value of V is determined for nuclei of Z≤26 and was found to be a function of the atomic number Z, the mass number A and the residual range of the nuclear particle. Also an empirical formula between the track length and the minor track diameter, the dip angle and the bulk-etch thickness is obtained. Present calculations show that the etched-off thickness from the detector surface at the moment of perforation of CR-39 depends upon REL and is also a function of Z/β of the nuclear particle. The obtained results have important applications in the fields of nuclear spectroscopy and the production of nuclear track filters