Validation of energy-weighted algorithm for radiation portal monitor using plastic scintillator

Abstract To prevent illicit tracking of radionuclides, radiation portal monitor (RPM) systems employing plastic scintillators have been used in ports and airports. However, their poor energy resolution makes the discrimination of radioactive material inaccurate. In this study, an energy weight algorithm was validated to determine 133 Ba, 22 Na, 137 Cs, and 60 Co by using a plastic scintillator. The Compton edges of energy spectra were converted to peaks based on the algorithm. The peaks have a maximum error of 6% towards the theoretical Compton edge.