On Tue, Mar 14, 2017 at 9:25 AM, newxito wrote: I begin to get really nervous, I think I'll buy a geiger counter >
Measuring radioactivity is a science itself and to get meaningful data you need to have a good understanding of the phenomena (physics). For example, measuring emissions close to the object will never represent real-life situations where Nixies (in this case) sit on a shelf in the living room. Also, an object that has been in a radioactive environment doesn't turn active itself (in general). I am sure NeonJohn could tell a lot about this subject. If you are into building circuits, search for "BPW34 counter" and pick one: this will give you an initial idea of what is active around you. The photodiode must be shielded from light (but not too much otherwise you block beta/weak radiation). For a very quick way, get the Radioactivity Counter by Mr Klein (both Android and Apple) that uses the photocamera of a smartphone operated in darkness (use kitchen Alu foil kept in place by the back cover: removable, mechanical, no sticky tape needed thus reusable on the field). His documentation also does a good job explaining how to operate properly the App, which creates a background for the BPW34 too. You won't get absolute uS/h values, but you'll begin to "see" what is around you. Note that it took me months before I came across something active. Also note that the photocamera is sensitive to a definite range of energy in ionizing particles (smtg like 200 to 600 kEv), so you won't get weaks and strongs, but it is a starting point IMO. That said, counters with Geiger-Muller tubes seem to hold their market value, but you need to understand what the meter is telling you, and how you measure. As Jonathan said, with Nixies the higher danger is through ingestion, but for other obvious reasons! Paolo PS: thanks for both 5092A pictures. Looks like mine are normal 5092. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "neonixie-l" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion on the web, visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/neonixie-l/CABj2VaYYR_fbGWqPyDdw_Dr50zfOW7GWpW4eQZ_pO7kUSi0D-A%40mail.gmail.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
