Thermal neutron detection with cadmium 1- x zinc x telluride semiconductor detectors

Cadmium zinc telluride (CdZnTe) detectors have been used to detect thermal neutrons. The CdZnTe detectors were placed in a double diffracted thermal neutron beam and the prompt gamma ray emissions from thermal neutron interactions in the Cd have been detected. The devices clearly show the 558.6 and 651.3 keV prompt gamma ray emission peaks from ¹¹³Cd(n, γ) ¹¹⁴Cd reactions. The intrinsic detection sensitivity is dependent on the gamma ray absorption efficiency, which is measured to be approximately (3.7±1.9)% at 558.6 keV for a 3 mm × 10 mm × 10 mm CdZnTe device.