Essay Archive - The Geiger-Muller Tube
The Geiger-Muller Tube
In the Geiger-Muller tube, particles ionize gas atoms. The tube
contains a gas at low pressure. At one end of the tube is a very thin ”window”
through which charged particles or gamma rays pass. Inside the tube is a copper
cylinder with a negative charge. A rigid wire with a positive charge runs down
the center of this cylinder. The voltage across the wire and cylinder is kept
just below the point at which a spontaneous discharge, or spark, occurs. When a
charged particle or gamma ray enters the tube , it ionizes a gas atom between
the copper cylinder and ....
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