The Feasibility of a Radiation Detection Scheme Utilizing the Pyromagnetic Effect

摘要

A study has been made of the feasibility of using the pyromagnetic effect for detecting electromagnetic radiation. In the pyromagnetic detector, a voltage is induced in a coil surrounding a magnetic material when that material is subjected to a heat pulse. This voltage, which is the exact dual of the induced current in a capacitor due to the well known pyroelectric effect, is generated by the time varying magnetization component that results from the thermal perturbations. The pyromagnetic response of both first and second order transition materials was investigated as the material was warmed through the transition region. The very first measurements with gadolinium confirmed the intended goal of this feasibility study and the research effort concentrated on several aspects related to optimization. Typical sensitivities were on the order of 0.1 microvolt/watt/coil turn but the NEP was always limited by stray pickup. These measurements were performed with common phase detection techniques with beam chopping rates from 10 to 1000 Hz. In view of these initial measurements, it is felt that a detector using the pyromagnetic effect has promise as a fast, sensitive, room temperature detector for the range of frequencies from microwave to optical. (Author)