Overdispersion in nuclear statistics

The modern statistical distribution theory is applied to the development of the overdispersion theory in ionizing-radiation statistics for the first time. The physical nuclear system is treated as a sequence of binomial processes, each depending on a characteristic probability, such as probability of decay, detection, etc. The probabilities fluctuate in the course of a measurement, and the physical reasons for that are discussed. If the average values of the probabilities change from measurement to measurement, which originates from the random Lexis binomial sampling scheme, then the resulting distribution is overdispersed. The generating functions and probability distribution functions are derived, followed by a moment analysis. The Poisson and Gaussian limits are also given. The distribution functions belong to a family of generalized hypergeometric factorial moment distributions by Kemp and Kemp, and can serve as likelihood functions for the statistical estimations. An application to radioactive decay with detection is described and working formulae are given, including a procedure for testing the counting data for overdispersion. More complex experiments in nuclear physics (such as solar neutrino) can be handled by this model, as well as distinguishing between the source and background.