Total efficiency calibration for coincidence-summing corrections

In gamma-ray spectrometry, coincidence-summing corrections are required to determine accurate efficiency calibrations and to obtain quantitative analysis results. These corrective factors directly depend on the radionuclide decay scheme and on the detector efficiency for the measurement geometrical conditions and can be computed using the Efficiency Transfer for Nuclide Activity (ETNA) software. The accuracy of the corrections depends on the total efficiency (TE) calibration that is hardly obtained over the whole energy as the required experimental conditions are not easily attained. Monte Carlo simulation is used to link the TE calibration to the full-energy peak one. The computation results are compared with experimental data obtained using four high-purity germanium detectors. The influence of TE accuracy on the coincidence-summing corrections is also derived.