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Advanced Physics Laboratories

        
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Compton Scattering

ABOUT THE EXPERIMENT
The scattering of X-rays by electrons was discovered by A. H. Compton in 1923. From careful measurements of the spectrum of scattered X-rays he showed that they suffered a shift to longer wavelengths. The size of the shift depended on the angle of scatter, and could be calculated by considering the process as a collision between a single photon and a single electron in which energy and momentum were conserved. The effect provides a striking demonstration of an electromagnetic wave behaving like a beam of "particles". The main purpose of this experiment is to observe the effect of gamma-rays being scattered by material, and to measure their energy shifts as a function of their scattering angles
WHAT YOU WILL LEARN
  • Particle behaviour of waves
  • Scintillators, photomultipliers, NIM electronics for fast timing measurements
  • Computer controlled ADC and histogramming with the Amptek "Pocket MCA"
PREPARATION
  • If you are completely unfamiliar with the tools of scintillator detection, you may want to do the Gamma-Ray Spectroscopy experiment before trying Compton Lifetime.
  • Required reading:
    • "Compton Scattering", 441-442 Writeup (PDF) and references therein.
    • Sections on scintillators and pulse electronics in "Gamma Ray Spectroscopy" 441-442 Write-up
  • Recommended reading:(See Writeup) 
    • G.F.Knoll, Radiation Detection and Measurement, Chap 2,8,9,16, 17
OTHER DOCUMENTATION