  Radium scintillation slide.
This is a microscope slide designed to let you view the streaks of light given off when the alpha particles produced by the radioactive decay of radium strike a zinc sulfide luminous screen. It's basically a spinthariscope (see several examples above) without a built-in magnifying glass. I haven't tried look at it in a microscope, but I would be surprised if it still works: Old zinc sulfide screens decay after a decade or so, and loose their luminous properties except under strong UV light (which is how this sample was photographed: UV on one side, normal light on the other).
Source: eBay seller tamagno
Contributor: Theodore Gray
Acquired: 25 October, 2005
Text Updated: 9 May, 2007
Price: $60
Size: 3"
Purity: <0.1%
Sample Group: Spinthariscopes
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