The ionization chamber is the simplest of all gas-filled radiation detectors, and is widely used for the detection and measurement of certain types of ionizing radiation; X-rays, gamma rays, and beta particles. Conventionally, the term "ionization chamber" is used exclusively to describe those detectors which collect all the charges created by direct ionization within the gas through the application of an electric field.[1] It only uses the discrete charges created by each interaction between the incident radiation and the gas, and does not involve the gas multiplication mechanisms used by other radiation instruments, such as the Geiger counter or the proportional counter. Ion chambers have a good uniform response to radiation over a wide range of energies and are the preferred means of measuring high levels of gamma radiation. They are widely used in the nuclear power industry, research labs, radiography, radiobiology, and environmental monitoring.

The proportional counter is a type of gaseous ionization detector device used to measure particles of ionizing radiation. The key feature is its ability to measure the energy of incident radiation, by producing a detector output pulse that is proportional to the radiation energy absorbed by the detector due to an ionizing event; hence the detector's name. It is widely used where energy levels of incident radiation must be known, such as in the discrimination between alpha and beta particles, or accurate measurement of X-ray radiation dose. Plot of variation of ion pair current against applied voltage for a wire cylinder gaseous radiation detector. A proportional counter uses a combination of the mechanisms of a Geiger–Müller tube and an ionization chamber, and operates in an intermediate voltage region between these. The accompanying plot shows the proportional counter operating voltage region for a co-axial cylinder arrangement.

A Geiger counter (also known as Geiger–Müller counter or Geiger–Muller counter) is an instrument used for detecting and measuring ionizing radiation. It is widely used in applications such as radiation dosimetry, radiological protection, experimental physics, and the nuclear industry. It detects ionizing radiation such as alpha particles, beta particles, and gamma rays using the ionization effect produced in a Geiger–Müller tube, which gives its name to the instrument.[1] In wide and prominent use as a hand-held radiation survey instrument, it is perhaps one of the world's best-known radiation detection instruments.

The cloud chamber is one of the oldest particle detectors used for the observation of ionizing radiation. It was created by the Scottish physicist Charles Thomson Rees Wilson (1869-1959), who built the first fully operational cloud chamber as early as in 1911. In the early 20th century, the device was used to discover subatomic particles. Our chamber, manufactured by a Czech company Nuledo, is much more advanced. It consists of a sealed environment containing supersaturated vapors of water or alcohol (we use propyl alcohol). When a charged particle passes through the chamber, it results in the ionization of the mixture. The resulting ions act as condensation centers, forming a mist-like trail of droplets - a cloud - around them.