Ionization measurements in small gas samples by single ion counting

A new method for highly efficient measurements of the ionization statistics in small, wall-less, well-defined low density gas samples is proposed. It is based on counting ions, induced by radiation in a sensitive gas volume. The high resolution permits the measurement of spatial correlations between the number of ions induced in two distanced small sensitive volumes. Using tissue- or solid-equivalent gases, the method allows the accurate determination of the ionization statistics in the corresponding sub-nanometer volume of condensed matter. These data are of relevance to the modeling of microscopic phenomena related to the interaction of radiation with matter, such as in nanodosimetry and studies of radiation damage to solid state devices.