
317
11
Inorganic/Isotopic
Sample Preparation
The conditioning and preparation of samples for radiation counting have also been
t
reated to an extent in other parts of this book.
11.1 ALPHA COUNTING
Samples for α counting must be thin enough that range straggling does not prevent α
p
articles
f
rom
e
ntering
t
he
s
ensitive
a
rea
o
f
t
he
d
etector
o
r
d
egrade
t
he
p
eak
s
tructure
o
f
t
he
s
pectrum.
T
his
i
s
a
ccomplished
b
y
p
urifying
α-
emitting
c
hemical
f
ractions
f
rom
a
ll
i
nert
c
ontaminants.
I
n
t
he
ca
se
o
f
l
ong-lived
α
e
mitters,
s
uch
a
s
i
sotopes
o
f
U
a
nd
T
h,
ca
re
m
ust
b
e
t
aken
t
o
b
alance
t
he
d
ecay
r
ate
o
f
t
he
s
ource
a
gainst
t
he
quantity of analyte mass that ac