A study of the indium and germanium photopeaks in the background spectra of Ge spectrometers with a passive shield

Cosmic ray neutron interactions with indium, used as electrical contact within a Ge diode, the diode itself and the surrounding materials can give rise to a large number of photopeaks in the 50 to 1300 keV region of background spectra of Ge spectrometers with a passive shield. The nuclear processes and decays involved in the production of these photopeaks are discussed. These cosmic ray produced photopeaks are compared with those due to primordial radionuclides. Some useful information can be drawn from these measurements on the contribution of the cosmic rays on the background of Ge detectors with a passive shield.