Transforming Inexpensive, Commercial Audio and Video Components into a Useful Charged Particle Spectrometer.

Necessity often leads to inspiration. Such was the case when a traditional amplifier quit working during the collection of an alpha particle spectrum. I had a $15 battery-powered audio amplifier in my box of project electronics so I connected it between the preamplifier and the multichannel analyzer. The alpha particle spectrum that appeared on the computer screen matched expectations even without correcting for impedance mismatches. Encouraged by this outcome, I have begun to systematically replace each of the parts in the traditional charged particle spectrometer with audio and video components available through consumer electronics stores with the goal of producing an inexpensive charged particle spectrometer for use in education and research. I hope my successes, setbacks, and results to date will inform and inspire others.