Performance Characterization of a Plastic Scintillator Sensor for Fast Neutron, Thermal Neutron, and Gamma Ray Discrimination

Liu, Yuhang; An, Fengpeng; Luo, Guang; Wang, Wei; Zhang, Xuesong; Lu, Dixiao; Yin, Xiaohao

doi:10.3390/s26113462

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Performance Characterization of a Plastic Scintillator Sensor for Fast Neutron, Thermal Neutron, and Gamma Ray Discrimination

by

Yuhang Liu

¹,

Fengpeng An

^1,*

,

Guang Luo

^2,*

,

Wei Wang

^1,3,*,

Xuesong Zhang

¹,

Dixiao Lu

¹ and

Xiaohao Yin

¹

School of Physics, Sun Yat-sen University, No. 135 West Xingang Road, Guangzhou 510275, China

²

School of Science, Sun Yat-sen University, No. 66 Gongchang Road, Shenzhen 518107, China

³

Institut Franco-Chinois de l’Énergie Nucléaire, Sun Yat-sen University, No. 2 Daxue Road, Zhuhai 519082, China

^*

Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Sensors 2026, 26(11), 3462; https://doi.org/10.3390/s26113462 (registering DOI)

Submission received: 28 April 2026 / Revised: 20 May 2026 / Accepted: 28 May 2026 / Published: 30 May 2026

(This article belongs to the Section Physical Sensors)

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Abstract

A compact single-PMT composite scintillation detector was developed and characterized for discrimination of

γ

rays, fast neutrons, and thermal neutrons in mixed radiation fields. The detector assemblies consisted of either EJ200 or EJ276 plastic scintillators optically coupled to an EJ426 thermal neutron screen and read out by a single photomultiplier tube (PMT). The

γ

−equivalent energy response of the detector assemblies was calibrated using

^{137}

Cs,

^{22}

Na, and

^{60}

Co sources through Compton edge analysis, and pulse shape discrimination was evaluated with an Am–Be neutron source under different moderator thicknesses. The EJ200+EJ426 assembly provides a well-separated discrimination between thermal neutron capture events and

γ

dominated events over the measured range, with a figure of merit greater than 5. In contrast, the EJ276+EJ426 assembly produced three identifiable signal populations associated with

γ

rays, fast neutrons, and thermal neutrons. These results show that the proposed sensor architecture is a promising compact approach for mixed-field radiation applications.

Keywords: scintillator; pulse shape discrimination; neutron detector

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MDPI and ACS Style

Liu, Y.; An, F.; Luo, G.; Wang, W.; Zhang, X.; Lu, D.; Yin, X. Performance Characterization of a Plastic Scintillator Sensor for Fast Neutron, Thermal Neutron, and Gamma Ray Discrimination. Sensors 2026, 26, 3462. https://doi.org/10.3390/s26113462

AMA Style

Liu Y, An F, Luo G, Wang W, Zhang X, Lu D, Yin X. Performance Characterization of a Plastic Scintillator Sensor for Fast Neutron, Thermal Neutron, and Gamma Ray Discrimination. Sensors. 2026; 26(11):3462. https://doi.org/10.3390/s26113462

Chicago/Turabian Style

Liu, Yuhang, Fengpeng An, Guang Luo, Wei Wang, Xuesong Zhang, Dixiao Lu, and Xiaohao Yin. 2026. "Performance Characterization of a Plastic Scintillator Sensor for Fast Neutron, Thermal Neutron, and Gamma Ray Discrimination" Sensors 26, no. 11: 3462. https://doi.org/10.3390/s26113462

APA Style

Liu, Y., An, F., Luo, G., Wang, W., Zhang, X., Lu, D., & Yin, X. (2026). Performance Characterization of a Plastic Scintillator Sensor for Fast Neutron, Thermal Neutron, and Gamma Ray Discrimination. Sensors, 26(11), 3462. https://doi.org/10.3390/s26113462

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Performance Characterization of a Plastic Scintillator Sensor for Fast Neutron, Thermal Neutron, and Gamma Ray Discrimination

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