A practical method for determining γ-ray full-energy peak efficiency considering coincidence-summing and self-absorption corrections for the measurement of environmental samples after the Fukushima reactor accident

A method for determining the γ-ray full-energy peak efficiency at positions close to three Ge detectors and at the well port of a well-type detector was developed for measuring environmental volume samples containing 137Cs, 134Cs and 40K. The efficiency was estimated by considering two correction factors: coincidence-summing and self-absorption corrections. The coincidence-summing correction for a cascade transition nuclide was estimated by an experimental method involving measuring a sample at the far and close positions of a detector. The derived coincidence-summing correction factors were compared with those of analytical and Monte Carlo simulation methods and good agreements were obtained. Differences in the matrix of the calibration source and the environmental sample resulted in an increase or decrease of the full-energy peak counts due to the self-absorption of γ-rays in the sample. The correction factor was derived as a function of the densities of several matrix materials. The present method was applied to the measurement of environmental samples and also low-level radioactivity measurements of water samples using the well-type detector.