Application of a Statistical Correlation Function for Determining Daughter Half-Lives in the Range 10−4 to 10−1 Second

Abstract

Discussed herein is the application of a statistical correlation method [Goldanski and Podgoretski, Doklady Akad. Nauk. S.S.S.R. 100, 237 (1955)] to the determination of the lifetime of an activity in equilibrium with a long‐lived parent activity. It is shown that this method has a definite advantage over delayed‐coincidence methods when the lifetime to be measured is of the order of 10⁻⁴ sec or longer. An electronic apparatus designed to perform the operations required by the statistical correlation method is described. This equipment has been used for a new determination, 0.293±0.020×10⁻³ sec, for the half‐life of Y^88m.