Be Analyses with a Compact AMS Facility—Are Bef 2 Samples the Solution

The injection of 10 BeF - instead of 10 BeO - into a compact accelerator mass spectrometry system with a terminal voltage of 0.58 MV was investigated, because BF - molecules are unstable and isobaric interference of 10 B with 10 Be can thus be significantly reduced. We describe the method we developed to prepare BeF 2 samples. 10 Be was measured in a segmented gas ionization detector. Separation of 10 Be from 10 B could be achieved both for ions in the 1+ charge state with an energy of 0.8 MeV and in the 2+ charge state with an energy of 1.4 MeV. The 2+ ions are better separated, whereas the 1+ charge state has a higher transmission. 10 Be/ 9 Be ratios (~10 -12 ) in a suite of rock samples were successfully determined for exposure dating in either charge state and compared with measurements made on the 6MV tandem

Accelerator mass spectrometry · Atomic physics · Chromatography · Ion · Ionization · Isobaric process · Isotope · Mass spectrometry · Nuclear physics · Physics · Radiochemistry · Tandem accelerator · Chemistry · Nuclear Physics and Applications · Radioactive contamination and transfer · Radioactivity and Radon Measurements