Temperature Dependence of NaI(Tl) Decay Constant

NaI(Tl) detectors are used for a wide range of applications in different temperature environments. Optimizing NaI(Tl) spectrometer performance under these conditions requires a knowledge of the change in NaI(Tl) decay time constant over the temperature range of spectrometer operation. Measurements of the decay time constant are presented between -25°C and +180°C. Above +25°C the decay time constant decreases slowly, but increases rapidly below +25°C at a rate of ~5 nsec/°C.