UF6 as a detector gas for fission studies

A Frisch-grid ionization chamber has been built to test a mixture of argon with gaseous UF6 and to study its properties as a counting gas. We present first results using increasing mass fractions of 238UF6 mixed into argon. The drift velocity of the electrons increases with the content of 238UF6, while a good signal quality and energy resolution of the ionization chamber is preserved. Using uranium hexafluoride in the detector gas may give access to experiments where extremely high luminosity is required in combination with good angular and energy and/or mass resolution. Examples comprise the investigation of spontaneous fission of 238U, the study of parity non-conservation in the fission process, or precision measurements of fission fragments with good resolution using tagged photons in the entrance channel.