A new method to measure track density and to differentiate nuclear tracks in CR-39 detectors

An alternative method to count and differentiate nuclear tracks in SSNTD is described. The method is based on the analysis of Fraunhofer diffraction p attern of coherent light produced by tracks of an etched SSNT detector. The diffraction pattern was also simulated by applying computational Fourier O ptics. The comparison between results obtained by simulation and by the the oretical model gave satisfactory concordance. The proposed method is capabl e of differentiating tracks in CR-39 by their diameter and energies. The di ameter resolution ranged between 8% and 25%, while the counting error was l ess than 15%. The discriminating ability to distinguish genuine etched trac ks from defects and background anomalies is demonstrated. The incidence ang le did not influence significantly the total count and the track parameter measuring capability. Errors due to track overlapping are only significant for track densities higher than 3 x 10(5) cm(-2). (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.