Patent ID: 8274056

Claim:
An apparatus for detecting a low-energy beta particle source, the apparatus comprising: a first scintillator; a second scintillator adjacent to the first scintillator; each of the first scintillator and second scintillator being structured to generate a light pulse responsive to interaction with beta particles, the first scintillator being structured to experience full energy deposition of low-energy beta particles from a specific beta source, and permit higher-energy beta particles from other beta sources to pass therethrough and interact with the second scintillator; a light-to-electrical converter operably coupled to the second scintillator and configured to convert light pulses generated by the first scintillator and the second scintillator into electrical signals, wherein the first scintillator and the second scintillator exhibit at least one mutually different characteristic for an electronic system to determine whether a given light pulse is generated in the first scintillator or the second scintillator; and a data analysis unit operably coupled to the light-to-electrical converter for receiving the electrical signals, wherein the data analysis unit is configured to analyze the electrical signals and determine a presence of the specific beta source from among a plurality of beta sources.