Abstract The neutron sensor in an active neutron-sensitive personal dosemeter typically comprises a planar silicon diode topped with a converter layer. Neutrons interact in the converter to produce charged particles that are then detected in the diode. However, in the dosimetrically important energy region of a few keV to a few MeV, the efficiency of such devices is small because of the small cross section for producing the charged particles and their very limited range within the converter. The efficiency can in principle be improved by etching fine structures such as trenches or wells in the silicon, and filling these with the converter, so that a considerably larger amount of converter is within one particle range of the silicon. This study quantifies the potential improvements in efficiency for a selection of structure sizes and fast monoenergetic neutron energies. It also investigates how seriously these improvements are degraded if there is a dead layer at the surface of the silicon.

中文翻译：

---

从精细结构中提高快中子半导体传感器的潜在效率：包括死层在内的模拟研究

摘要 有源中子敏感个人剂量计中的中子传感器通常包括顶部带有转换层的平面硅二极管。中子在转换器中相互作用以产生带电粒子，然后在二极管中检测到这些粒子。然而，在几个 keV 到几个 MeV 的剂量学上重要的能量区域中，由于用于产生带电粒子的横截面很小，并且它们在转换器内的范围非常有限，因此此类设备的效率很低。原则上可以通过在硅中蚀刻诸如沟槽或井之类的精细结构并用转换器填充这些结构来提高效率，使得相当大量的转换器处于硅的一个颗粒范围内。这项研究量化了选择结构尺寸和快速单能中子能量的潜在效率改进。它还调查了如果在硅表面有死层，这些改进会受到多大的影响。