The MCLinc laboratory facility is equipped with an array of instrumental techniques to monitor radiological activity. These instruments include LSC, Gas-Proportional, and Gamma Spectroscopy.
- Liquid scintillation counting (LSC) is an analytical technique which incorporates a radiolabeled analyte into uniform distribution with a liquid chemical medium capable of converting the kinetic energy of nuclear emissions into light energy. LSC is a sophisticated laboratory counting system used to quantify the activity of particulate emitting (alpha and beta) radioactive samples, though it can also detect the auger electrons emitted from 51Cr and 125I samples.
- Gas Proportional Counting (GPC) is a technique to monitor particles of ionizing radiation. Gas proportional counters have excellent sensitivity to low levels of alpha and beta radiation. Applications include both general sample and radionuclide specific analyses.
- Gamma Spectroscopy is a technique that can identify and quantify individual gamma ray sources. Most radioactive sources produce gamma rays of various energies and intensities that, when collected and analyzed, produce a gamma ray energy spectrum. The energy lines in the spectrum are unique to a particular isotope and, thus can be used to identify the isotope, while the intensity of the line can quantify the isotope. MCLinc uses a high purity germanium detector.