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Features

• Completely integrated alpha spectroscopy instrument
• 100% computer controlled electronics and vacuum
• Automatic recoil suppression control
• Modular for ease of expansion
• Straightforward sample oriented graphical user interface
• Clean vent port to reduce moisture and contamination buildup in chambers
• Extensive QA record keeping built in
• Connects directly to Ethernet network
• Optional calibration services and startup

Description

CANBERRA's Alpha Analyst™ along with Apex-Alpha™ software is the complete solution for both routine and non-routine alpha spectroscopy applications. This flexible Alpha Spectroscopy System is designed to operate the way you do – whether that’s counting samples in a production “batch mode” environment or one sample at a time in a research type environment.

Turnkey Performance

The Alpha Analyst is a turnkey instrument solution from CANBERRA. It is available with a full suite of integration, installation, calibration, training, and consulting services that let you begin productive sample counting soon after set up.

Traditionally, the user of an alpha spectroscopy system might spend large amounts of time integrating components, setting up hardware and software, building analysis procedures, calibrating, training operators and writing standard operating procedures. With the Alpha Analyst and the full suite of calibration services performed by a trained expert, the instrument will be ready to begin processing samples in only a couple of days.

Complete Computer Control

CANBERRA's Alpha Analyst uses Apex-Alpha lab productivity software. Apex-Alpha is the ultimate alpha spectroscopy software package for automating Alpha Analyst detector set-up and calibration, quality assurance, sample analysis and reporting activities in large or small alpha spectroscopy laboratories. This software package brings the productivity gains to alpha spectroscopy that the Apex® Lab Productivity Suite has brought to gamma spectroscopy for a number of years.

With Apex-Alpha, the complete status of your alpha analyst is available at a glance. Click - and find all the batches waiting to be counted. Log samples into the system from any location where the information is known, such as from the radiochemistry laboratory or other sample log-in area. Let Apex-Alpha enforce your calibration/QA schedules and monitor QA results - and automatically take the appropriate action if something goes wrong.

The integral instrument controller unit coordinates all operations on an Alpha Analyst including: instrument setup, automatic pumping and venting of spectrometers, data acquisition, control and the monitoring of the status of each spectrometer. Computer control of the front end electronics eliminates any knobs to turn or buttons to push so the possibility of tampering or accidental settings modification is eliminated. Precise adjustment of all front end electronics is accomplished via Apex-Alpha.

Data acquisition is continuously and automatically monitored during all aspects of instrument operation preventing any corruption of data due to vacuum loss. No longer will samples need to be recounted because the vacuum was lost 8 hours into a 16 hour count. The pressure of each individual chamber is independently and continuously monitored to verify correct operating conditions are established and maintained for data acquisition. Should the pressure in any chamber at any time during counting exceed the user defined limit, acquisition will be automatically suspended until the proper operating pressure is again attained, at which time the controller will continue the count.

Integrating your Laboratory

CANBERRA's Alpha Analyst offers the same consistency of operation and flexibility offered with all Genie applications. The Alpha Analyst instrument makes use of an Ethernet based computer controlled MCA located in the Alpha Analyst Controller Unit.

Because it is Ethernet based, the Alpha Analyst can be located and controlled from where it is convenient for your operation including client/server distributed architecture.

Redundancy of operation is paramount in high volume applications instrument down time due to computer failure cannot be tolerated. The Alpha Analyst is totally integrated containing the detector signal processing and control electronics allowing instrument control from multiple clients.

Instrument settings are maintained in Apex-Alpha ensuring the system integrity is maintained at all times. A complete copy of all instrument settings is maintained with each and every sample measurement, providing traceability for each measurement directly to the appropriate instrument setup and calibration.

Vacuum management is accomplished entirely by the controller unit. There are no mechanical valves to manipulate simplifying the task of loading and unloading samples. The operator can concentrate on getting the samples counted and let the computer automatically manipulate the vacuum system to control venting, protecting acquiring chambers from inadvertent venting.

Standard Operating Procedures

The standardized instrument design of the Alpha Analyst eliminates the hours normally needed to write custom operating procedures specific to each user's application. Each instrument includes a complete set of operating procedures governing routine sample analysis QA checks, background collection and system calibration. Should the end user desire to customize these procedures, they are supplied in both written and electronic formats.

Recoil Contamination Protection

Even with the most carefully prepared samples system operators cannot eliminate the possibility of contamination of the detector with recoil nuclei. This unwanted contamination leads to decreased measurement sensitivity and ultimately longer counting times until some detectors are eventually rendered useless. The Alpha Analyst includes recoil suppression as a standard feature on each instrument so that you can maintain consistently low backgrounds maintain sample throughput and extend the life of your alpha detectors.

During instrument setup the user defines a desired air thickness (μg/cm2) to maintain in the counting chamber during the measurement of samples. When samples are counted in the vacuum regulation mode the computer controlled vacuum system automatically regulates the operating pressure in each dual alpha spectrometer to within ±10% of the desired operating vacuum.

This protective layer of air coupled with a +5 volt bias applied to the detector shell provides the ultimate defense from recoil contamination.

Clean Vent Feature

In environmental applications requiring low sensitivity it is desirable to reduce or eliminate the introduction of radon and/or moisture into the counting chambers during loading and unloading operations. The Alpha Analyst makes available the clean vent port, which allows for the chambers to be vented using (customer supplied) dry bottled air or nitrogen which is free of radon and its progeny. All chambers are connected to a common vent manifold, which is supplied with low pressure compressed air or nitrogen.

When the counting chambers are vented for sample loading/unloading the chambers are backfilled with this supplied gas and continuously purged while the chambers are open to atmosphere.

PIPS Detectors

CANBERRA's Passivated Implanted Planar Silicon (PIPS) detectors are a product of modern semiconductor technology whose performance surpasses that of traditional silicon surface barrier (SSB) type detectors and diffused junction (DJ) type devices. The PIPS detector has a number of advantages over the older technologies for room temperature detection of alpha particles.

The electrical contacts on a PIPS detector are ion-implanted to form precise thin and abrupt junctions for good alpha resolution.

The entrance window of a PIPS detector is stable and rugged - and standard detectors are bakeable to 100 °C. The leakage current a major contributor to detector noise is typically 0.1 to 0.001 that of SSB and DJ type detectors.

The Model A450-18 AM is by far the most popular model detector for standard alpha spectroscopy but other sizes are also available.

The Alpha Analyst on Legacy VMS

For users requiring capability with an existing OpenVMS®-based operating system, the Alpha Analyst is also compatible with CANBERRA's legacy VMS Alpha Management Software (AMS). This allows existing AMS users to expand or upgrade and take advantage of the features available with the Alpha Analyst hardware particularly the 100% complete control recoil suppression mode and space saving design.

Alpha Analyst Modular Upgrades

For users who have open space in an existing Alpha Analyst, CANBERRA offers the Model 7200 dual spectrometer as a cost-effective way to increase capacity two chambers at a time.

Installation and Startup

Traditionally, the purchase of a new instrument meant days or even weeks of set up and calibrations before you could count your first sample. The Alpha Analyst is provided with factory integration and testing. When the Alpha Analyst is purchased with the exclusive installation and calibration services you'll be counting samples in record time. The installation services include setup of the instrument at the customer's site, software installation, tailoring of the setup to site specific requirements and basic training on the overall operation of the instrument. A trained professional will assist with creation of nuclide libraries, calibration certificates, counting protocols, analysis sequence files and QA files. When the setup is completed your operators will know the basics of calibrations and sample counting.

In addition to the installation services, the calibration and consulting options can be purchased for users who need to go beyond the basics of the installation services. Complete energy shape and efficiency calibrations will be performed on each detector. Instrument checks will be performed including detector backgrounds and pulser checks. When finished the instrument will be completely configured and calibrated and your trained operators will be ready to begin counting samples.