Precision half-life measurement of 140La with Ge-detector

Half-life is one of the fundamental properties of radioactive nuclei, and the precision required for its numerous applications in modern physics sometimes approaches the level of 10−4–10−5. Most part of the T1/2 measurements performed up to now was made with proportional chambers, and the results were sometimes hardly reproducible within the error limits. Using Ge-detectors for that purpose brought some significant advantages but electronic unit related effects and spectra analysis procedures still remain the sources of the errors influencing the accuracy of the T1/2 attained.