Radiation Sources You Should Know

When working with particle detectors it is important to be able to confirm they are functioning properly. Often this process involves using calibrated radioactive sources. Care should be taken to use a source which produces radiation similar to what the detector is designed to measure. I was recently informed by Andries that (begin paraphrase) Someone at your level should really have memorized all the useful sources (end paraphrase). Once again the great work of Science-Nonfiction by Leo comes to the rescue. Here is a summary of the common sources particle physicist use (from Leo).