Cyclotron frequency technique of the measurement of beta decay spectra

The calculations made show that the energy of a single beta decay electron can be measured in a homogeneous magnetic field by measuring the frequency of its cyclotron radiation. The radioactive source is placed in an oversized waveguide at the liquid N2 temperature and the signal is directed to a maser amplifier. The technique can be applied to the precise measurement of discrete spectra of low-intensity samples. As detailed description of the method requires some specification of physical conditions, attention is focused on its possible application to continuous spectra of tritium and other nuclei with an aim to narrow down neutrino mass limits. The activities of the end regions of the spectra tend to be rather low for the immediate application of this method to neutrino mass, therefore some preliminary experiments are needed in order to maximally increase the sample surface. Still, some other applications, like the measurement of the mass differences of helium and tritium nuclei, and the testing of molecular and surface corrections to beta decay samples, are feasible free from this problem.(author). fig., 9 refs