Talk:Geiger counter

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According to Knoll, the response to gamma rays comes by way of gamma-ray interactions with the sold wall of the counter. Using high-Z materials for the wall, makes the counters more suited for gamma-ray detection.

Should this be inserted in the text?


  • The sensor contains a halogen quenched GM-counter tube which detects beta and gamma radiation with energies above 0.4 MeV. Each count event is accompanied by a short positive pulse (5V, 0.265 ms) on pin 1 of the BT connector. Each event is indicated visually by a flash of the LED on the sensor and accustically by a 3 kHz beep of 84.5 ms.

This sounds like the specs of a specific module or standard apparatus, not anything inherent to the GM tube; right? Unless anyone objects or can clarify (The whole article might need a little work actually), I'll remove it.

Would it be OK to merge the Geiger-Mueller tube article with this Geiger counter article ? --DavidCary 03:52, 16 Dec 2004 (UTC)

Does anyone know what the "official" name is for this? Geiger counter or Geiger-Müller counter? I want to redirect the correct way. -- postglock 14:59, 11 September 2005 (UTC)

As far as I know, Geiger counters can measure gamma rays?

In my school textbook, it is called Geiger-muller tube - QiQi

  • The proper official name should perhaps be the Geiger-Müller-Nuttall tube/counter.

My physics teacher (Mr 'Pill' Ball) at school [1] told us he used to be friends with John Mitchell Nuttall (1890-1958) who (like Rosalind Franklin for DNA later) was at first neglected and then forgotten. Nuttall worked with Geiger on the Geiger Nuttall law (1911) and claimed to be an equal joint inventor of the Geiger-Müller-Nuttall counter. It was to his ultimate disadvantage that the names were arranged alphabetically.
vendeka (talk) 14:51, 25 November 2007 (UTC)

  • A note to the wise cdv 715 an 717 are not geiger counters they are high range ion chambers that are no where near as sensitive as a geiger counter.

Moved above from main article page – this was added as justification of the removal of the image. If you have more information about the above, I'd suggest perhaps setting up a article for ion chambers (unless this is synonym for some already existing article) and placing this information in it. Thanks. - postglock 13:39, 17 November 2005 (UTC)

This article seems to have numerous spelling errors, and the punctuation and sentence structure is sloppy. It appears to be largely written in the first and second person, "I noticed" and "You must" and so on. Also, as far as I am aware, the correct term is "Geiger-Müller Tube", not Geiger Counter.

In the UK TV series Eleventh_Hour_(TV_series), broadcast 9th Feb 2006, a character remarks that some people dislike the name 'Geiger counter' because its inventor Hans_Geiger was an "arch Nazi" who doesn't deserve the constant recognition that geiger counter confers on him. (Instead they call it a 'radiation detector'.) I'm not suggesting you change the title of this entry or anything, but I wonder whether it's worth mentioning this within the text somewhere? Demos99 22:15, 9 February 2006 (UTC)

Yes, this is true. Inside the nuclear industry we call the Geiger Counter a 'Radiation Detector' nowadays. It's not really as a result of political correctness, but because 'Radiation Detector' is a better description. Radiation detectors come in all shapes and sizes, from little pager-sized units that you clip on your lapel to things that you can drive an 18-wheel truck through. They can have alpha probes, beta probes, or (if you really want one) a remote 'Geiger-Muller' type gamma probe, but as you say 'Radiation Detector' is the generic name, and 'Geiger Counter' only really lives on in some poorly-researched science-fiction scripts. 160.84.253.241 11:33, 2 March 2006 (UTC)

Well, i think 'radiation detector' is more like general name, there are many types of radiation detector - QiQi

The Geiger-Müller tube is referred to (in an abbreviated form even!) before it is defined. Someone should move the parenthetical text in the introduction further down into the article, and preferrably de-parenthesize it. 69.231.129.20 04:40, 9 March 2006 (UTC)

I've rearranged the first section accordingly, and for additional clarity (IMHO). I think it still needs work, there's some possibly irrelevant information. 142.59.153.99 04:46, 7 April 2006 (UTC)


Contents

[edit] Alpha radiation?

My textbook claims that "alpha particles cannot pass through the end window [of a Geiger counter]." What's up with that? Bayerischermann 03:54, 24 February 2006 (UTC)


[edit] Pre-1945 Geiger counters?

Growing up in an atomic-saavy family, I was told that counter built before 1945 (the first detonation of a nuclear device) were somehow more accurate. Any truth to this? Check-Six 05:06, 17 July 2006 (UTC)

Pre 1945 they were made for prospecting the ore, post they were made to avoid the concentrate fallout, somewhat as a placebo effect :-/

[edit] Vandalism

This page was vandalized with a message about somebody liking "dicks" and how they must "do" their mom in order to get rides to school each day. I restored the article to a previous version, and found a few places where similar vandalisms (obviously from the same person) had occured on this version as well. I skimmed through it and deleted what I found, but had a limited time to proofread. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 204.211.37.221 (talk) 17:35, 26 March 2007 (UTC).

[edit] Pre-lude counter?

Cant find anything to verify the existence of a pre-lude counter on the internet. 130.194.13.104 (talk) 23:44, 19 November 2007 (UTC)