The response of high-purity germanium detectors to X-rays with energy in the region of the Ge K-absorption edge.

The response of a high-purity germanium detector to X-rays in the 8-15-keV energy region has been investigated. The w-value and energy resolution dependencies on the X-ray energy have been studied. No abrupt variation of w is observed at the germanium K absorption-edge (11.104-keV). The detector energy resolution follows a characteristic linear dependence on Ex(-1/2) over the whole energy range. Both features are consistent with the absence of intrinsic nonlinearity effects in germanium at the K-edge.