KJM9922 – Radiochemical Measurement Techniques
Course description
Course content
The student will get a thorough introduction to radiochemial and nuclear measurement techniques, including how the associated detectors work. In particular, emphasis is on spectroscopy techniques where the energy of the radiation is accurately determined to enable nucleus identification and discrimination of unwanted nuclei. The most common measurement methods for alpha, beta, and gamma will all be thoroughly discussed and highlighted in four laboratory exercises.
Please notice that liquid scintillation detection is not included in this course, as it is thoroughly taught in KJM5912 – Radiochemistry.
Learning outcome
After completing this course you will:
- Know how to set up and calibrate a spectroscopy system.
- Understand how semiconductor detectors work.
- Understand how the interaction between gamma radiation and matter determine the shape and quality of a spectrum.
- Be able to set up and use a high resolution Ge-detector for gamma measurements.
- Be able to set up and use semiconductor detectors for particle detection (alpha and beta).
- Know enough about measurement systems to be able to select the right type of detector for measurement of radioactivity.
- Be able to evaluate how a sample needs to be prepared for detection and select suitable detector geometry and set up.
- Understand how multiple detectors can be interconnected (coincidence measurements) to improve selectivity and allow for position determination of the source.
Admission to the course
PhD candidates from the University of Oslo should apply for classes and register for examinations through Studentweb.
If a course has limited intake capacity, priority will be given to PhD candidates who follow an individual education plan where this particular course is included. Some national researchers’ schools may have specific rules for ranking applicants for courses with limited intake capacity.
PhD candidates who have been admitted to another higher education institution must apply for a position as a visiting student within a given deadline.
The courses KJM9922 and KJM5922 has common admission, with 6 places?in total.
Applicants are ranked by the following criteria:
- PhD students at the MN faculty
- Master's students at the Department of Chemistry who have the course?in their educational plan
- Master's students at the MN faculty
Formal prerequisite knowledge
KJM5903 – Radiation Protection
Before you can attend the mandatory laboratory courses, you have to have passed the following courses:
Recommended previous knowledge
Overlapping courses
- 5 credits overlap with KJM5922 – Radiochemical Measurement Techniques.
- 3 credits overlap with KJM9911 – Laboratory Exercises in Radiochemistry (discontinued).
- 3 credits overlap with KJM-FYS5920 – Nuclear measurement techniques and instruments (discontinued).
- 3 credits overlap with KJM5911 – Laboratorie?velser i radiokjemi (discontinued).
Teaching
The teaching consists of:
- Lectures (24 hours)
- Individual teaching in the form of video, podcast, and simulations (8-10 hours)
- Mandatory laboratory course (6 days of 8 hours)
- For the PhD variant of the course, there will be an additional laboratory exercise and a 4-hour lecture.
The laboratory course is mandatory and must be approved prior to the final examination.
A completed and approved laboratory course is valid for six semesters beyond the semester it was approved. After this period, you must complete the laboratory course again to be able to sit for the final examination.
It is mandatory to attend the first lecture (including students on the waiting list). If you are unable to attend the first lecture, you must notify the Department of Chemistry before the start of the lecture, otherwise, your course registration will be canceled
As?the?teaching involves laboratory and/or field work, you should consider taking out a separate travel and personal risk insurance.?Read about your insurance cover as a student.
Access to teaching
A student who has completed compulsory instruction and coursework and has had these approved, is not entitled to repeat that instruction and coursework. A student who has been admitted to a course, but who has not completed compulsory instruction and coursework or had these approved, is entitled to repeat that instruction and coursework, depending on available capacity.
Examination
- Final oral exam which counts 100% towards the final grade. Half of the time is spent on two selected lab reports.
The laboratory course must be approved before you can take the final exam.
It will also be counted as one of the three attempts to sit the exam for this course, if you sit the exam for one of the following courses: KJM5922 – Radiochemical Measurement Techniques
Examination support material
Map of nuclides
Grading scale
Grades are awarded on a pass/fail scale. Read more about?the grading system.
Resit an examination
Students who can document a valid reason for absence from the regular examination are offered a postponed examination at the beginning of the next semester.
Re-scheduled examinations are not offered to students who withdraw during, or did not pass the original examination.
More about examinations at UiO
- Use of sources and citations
- Special exam arrangements due to individual needs
- Withdrawal from an exam
- Illness at exams / postponed exams
- Explanation of grades and appeals
- Resitting an exam
- Cheating/attempted cheating
You will find further guides and resources at the web page on examinations at UiO.