"Kenneth Scharf" wrote in message
...
You probably could use a Neon bulb as a radiation detector. You'd have
to keep the tube in the dark (inside a black plastic box) and carefully
adjust the voltage across the tube so it was just below the firing voltage
(need a well regulated power supply). Then an alpha or beta particle
might be enough to trigger the tube into conduction. The sensitivity
would be determined how close to the firing voltage the bias supply was
set.

GM tubes don't work quite like that. They have a halogen gas in there as
well to "quench" the conduction caused by the radiation.


--
73
Brian G8OSN/W8OSN
www.g8osn.net

Sparkfun.com sells a 712 end-window geiger tube from LND, Inc. It's
sensitive to alpha and beta particles as well as gamma radiation, and
it's something like $70. They have a complete geiger counter kit which
includes a DC-DC converter to get the 500V for $140.

They currently have a promotion going on which is causing their site to be
hammered, but it should be back to normal in a day or two.
--scott

--
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."