Effect of radiation-induced discoloration of the cladding on liquid scintillating fibers

In the extremely high radiation regions of SSC experiments, detectors employing scintillating fibers (such as for tracking or calorimetry) may require the use of liquid scintillating fibers in place of solid fibers. Although the liquid in such fibers may be circulated, the tube which contains the liquid and serves as the cladding is fixed and may become discolored from the radiation. Here is presented the results of a study of the effect of this discoloration on light transmission for the case where the tube is composed of a borosilicate glass (Pyrex). Indications are that the discoloration has little effect on the light transmission. It was also found that the glass contributes to the light production in such a way that light output as a function of distance could be tuned by pre-irradiation