Simulation response of B4C-coated PPAC for thermal neutrons using GEANT4 Monte Carlo approach

Abstract In this work we report a technique employed for the detection of thermal neutrons using the parallel plate avalanche counter (PPAC). In order to make the detector sensitive to thermal neutrons a thin layer of B 4 C has been coated on the forward electrode of the PPAC configuration. Upon falling on the converter coating, charged particles were generated via the B 10 ( n , α ) Li 7 reaction. In this simulation study, thermal neutrons have been simulated using the GEANT4 MC code, and the response of the detector has been evaluated as a function of neutron energy. For a better understanding of the simulation response, the performance of the detector has been found using the two different physics list i.e., QGSP _ BIC _ HP and QGSP _ BERT _ HP . The obtained results predict that such boron-carbide based PPAC can be potentially utilized for thermal neutron detection. A complete description of the detector configuration and the simulation results is also presented.