Gamma-ray spectroscopy with inorganic scintillators

As discussed in section 1.2.1, the principle of scintillator detectors consists in converting photon energy into electrons kinetic energy, which in turn will be converted into light piped out of the scintillator and measured by a PMT. The first step is called the deposition of energy in the detector, and, for an ideal detector, it should be equal to the photon energy. This is not the case in real gamma detectors, especially at energies above $\sim$100 keV, depending on the type of interaction that each photon undergoes into the detector, detector geometry and the surrounding environment. A good knowledge of these factors is crucial to an understanding of the response of a scintillator detector.