A 3D-Printed Model That Simulates a Geiger–Müller Counter and the Radioactive Decay Experiment

• Karol N. Oliveira ^[1] ; Amanda C. Naujorks ^[1] ; Welica P. S. Freitas ^[1] ; Alem-Mar B. Goncalves ^[1] ; Lisiane B. Calheiro ^[1]
  1. [1] Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso do Sul

     Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso do Sul

     Brasil

     
• Localización: Journal of chemical education, ISSN 0021-9584, Vol. 98, Nº 10, 2021, págs. 3284-3287
• Idioma: inglés
• Texto completo no disponible (Saber más ...)
• Resumen

  • The use of radioactive isotopes in radioactive decay studies can be a problem due to the manipulation of radioisotopes, expensive equipment, and the difficulty of finding samples with a reasonable half-life (between 1 and 10 min). In this paper, we present a mock-up of a Geiger–Müller counter plus three fictitious radioisotopes. They form an experimental kit that teachers and professors can use in laboratories of schools and universities. Inside the Geiger electronic box, an Arduino board can recognize the isotope specimen sample the student inserts in the Geiger–Müller tube support. Once the measuring process starts, the Arduino simulates the particle counting as a function of time for that chosen isotope. The complete kit presented here costs approximately US$ 20.00, and it can be an alternative to other simulations for radioactive decay lessons.