INCREMENTALLY-ADJUSTABLE REGULATOR FOR NUCLEAR PULSE GENERATOR

1414527 Utilizing energy of radiation BULOVA WATCH CO Inc 17 May 1973 [18 May 1972] 23678/73 Heading G6P In a nuclear pulse generator (Fig. 2) a radioactive source 14 provides #-emission which is detected by a solid-state detector comprising a main detector area XII permanently connected to a terminal T 1 and subsidiary detector areas I-XI which are selectively connectible to the terminal T 1 through switches S 1 -S 11 so as to enable adjustment of the output pulse rate from the detector. In a practical construction (Fig. 3) the subsidiary detector areas are indented into the edge of the main detector area to define a rectangle overlaid by the source 14 which may be Pu-242 U-233 or Np-236. The detector is a solid state device. Each area of the detector leads to a respective conductive strip C1-C12, the latter having permanent connection via rivet 19 to a metal base 18, and defining terminal T 1 . Selected ones of the strips C1-C11 are connected to the base 18 by screws S1-S11 acting as switches. The subsidiary detector areas are related in binary fashion, so as to give incremental adjustments of 100 p.p.m. in the output pulse rate.