Partition of the Average Energy Deposited in Germanium as a Function of Incident Neutron Energy

The average energy deposited in crystalline germanium per incident neutron has been calculated as a function of neutron energy. The calculations are for neutron energies below 4 MeV, where scattering events predominate and charged-particle production is minimal. A calculation at 14 MeV by Nichols is also included. As the incident neutron energy increases from 50 keV to 14 MeV, the average ionization energy deposited increases from ∼1×${10}^{-12\mathrm{}}$ to $\approx 1\times {10}^{-8\mathrm{}}$ (erg/g) per (neutron/${\mathrm{cm}}^2$), and the energy available for displacements (nonionization) increases from $\approx 1\times {10}^{-10\mathrm{}}$ to $\approx 3\times {10}^{-9\mathrm{}}$ (erg/g) per (neutron/${\mathrm{cm}}^2$). The calculated neutron energy dependence of the energy available for displacements agrees with the energy dependence of carrier-removal experiments in germanium performed with monoenergetic neutrons. Comparisons of these calculations are made with analogous ones for silicon. The energy deposited into atomic processes per carrier removed for ∼40-Ω cm $n$-type germanium is $\approx 0.5\times {10}^{-9\mathrm{}}$ erg/carrier, and the corresponding number is about a factor of 2 larger in the case of $n$-type silicon.