01
Cast
ADC does not cure on its own. It is mixed with a free-radical initiator and poured into a mold that sets the shape and thickness of the finished detector.
Allyl Diglycol Carbonate Monomer
ADC Monomer: Cast Your Own Track Detectors
ADC monomer is the liquid resin that cures into PADC, poly(allyl diglycol carbonate): the clear thermoset plastic used worldwide as a solid-state nuclear track detector. Buy the monomer, add an initiator, cure it in a mold, and you have your own plastic nuclear track detectors in whatever size, shape, and thickness your experiment needs.
BSI sells ADC monomer for $300 per gallon, or $200 for a half gallon, the minimum order. One gallon casts about 5,100 one-inch-square, 1 mm pieces, or about 6¢ of resin per detector.
At a glance
The Raw Material Behind Plastic Track Detectors
The same allyl diglycol carbonate chemistry that has been cast into lenses and particle detectors since the 1940s, sold by the gallon so you can make detectors yourself.
Price
$300 / gal
Half-gallon minimum at $200; bulk pricing above 2 gallons.
Yield per Gallon
~5,100 pieces
1 in × 1 in × 1 mm, in theory; plan on ~4,100 after trim and rejects.
Chemistry
CAS 142-22-3
Diethylene glycol bis(allyl carbonate), sold under its generic chemical name.
Cures Into
PADC
A thermoset that records alpha particles, protons, heavy ions, and fission fragments as etchable tracks.
What you are buying
What Is ADC Monomer?
Allyl diglycol carbonate is a small molecule with an allyl group at each end. When a free-radical initiator is added and the liquid is heated, those allyl groups link up in three dimensions, and the liquid sets into a rigid, glass-clear, cross-linked solid: PADC.
That cross-linked network is what makes PADC such a good particle detector. A heavily ionizing particle (an alpha, a proton, a heavy ion, a fission fragment) breaks bonds along its path. Etching in hot sodium hydroxide attacks that damaged trail faster than the surrounding plastic, opening a pit you can see and count under a microscope. Gamma rays, X-rays, and beta particles do not ionize densely enough to leave a track, so the detector is naturally selective. Our plain-language explainer on plastic track detectors walks through the mechanism.
Because you are starting from liquid, you control the geometry: thin films, thick blocks, large-area sheets, or pieces cast around a fixture. That flexibility is the main reason to cast your own.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Chemical name | Diethylene glycol bis(allyl carbonate) |
| Common name | Allyl diglycol carbonate (ADC) |
| CAS number | 142-22-3 |
| Molecular formula | C12H18O7 (274.3 g/mol) |
| Form | Clear, colorless liquid |
| Monomer density | ≈1.14 g/cm3 |
| Cured polymer | PADC, poly(allyl diglycol carbonate), thermoset |
| Cured density | ≈1.31 g/cm3 |
| Volume shrinkage on cure | ≈13% |
| Cure chemistry | Free-radical, peroxide-initiated, heat-cured |
How far a gallon goes
How Many Detectors Does One Gallon Make?
One US gallon (3,785 mL) of ADC monomer weighs about 9.5 lb (4.3 kg). It shrinks roughly 13% as it cures, leaving about 3,300 cm3 of solid PADC. Here is what that volume becomes at common detector thicknesses, cut into one-inch-square (6.45 cm2) pieces.
| Sheet thickness | Cured sheet area | 1 in2 pieces (theoretical) | Usable pieces (80% yield) | Monomer cost per piece |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0.75 mm | ≈4.4 m2 | ≈6,800 | ≈5,400 | ≈4¢ |
| 1 mm | ≈3.3 m2 | ≈5,100 | ≈4,100 | ≈6¢ |
| 3 mm | ≈1.1 m2 | ≈1,700 | ≈1,350 | ≈18¢ |
Theoretical figures assume a monomer density of 1.14 g/cm3, a cured density of 1.31 g/cm3, and $300 per gallon; a half gallon makes half as many. The 80% column is a planning allowance for edge trim, saw kerf, and castings rejected for bubbles or stress; your yield depends on your molds and process. Initiator and equipment costs are extra.
Make your own
How to Make Plastic Nuclear Track Detectors From ADC Monomer
In outline, the monomer is mixed with a polymerization initiator, cast in a mold, and heat-cured into solid PADC sheet. Getting from liquid to a detector you can trust is where the real work is.
02
Cure
Heat drives the polymerization, turning the liquid into rigid, cross-linked PADC. The cure determines whether the sheet comes out clear, flat, and stress-free, or cloudy, cracked, and under-cured.
03
Cut and check
Cut the sheet to size, then etch an unexposed piece for background and expose another to a known alpha source to confirm track response. See our etching, handling, and QC best practices.
Process know-how
Making detector-grade sheet that is clear, flat, fully cured, and low in background depends on preparation, initiator, mold, and cure-cycle details that BSI developed in-house. We share them through our consulting service, billed at $100/hr with the time spent stated on every reply.
Safety
Polymerization initiators are reactive, temperature-sensitive chemicals. Read the SDS for every chemical you use, wear gloves and eye protection, and work in a ventilated space.
Cast or buy?
Casting Your Own vs. Buying Ready-Made Detectors
The monomer is far cheaper per piece. Ready-made chips save you the equipment, the learning curve, and the batch-to-batch characterization. Many labs do both.
| ADC monomer (cast it yourself) | BSI PADC detector chips | |
|---|---|---|
| What you receive | Liquid monomer by the gallon | Cast, cut, and polished chips, ready to expose |
| Price | $300/gallon; $200 per half gallon | $2/cm2; boron-coated $5/cm2 |
| Cost of one 1 in2 × 1 mm piece | ≈6¢ in monomer, plus initiator, molds, and labor | ≈$12.90 |
| Thickness and shape | Anything you can mold | ~0.75 mm or 3 mm standard; custom sizes on request |
| Equipment needed | Initiator, molds, curing and cutting equipment, plus the process know-how | None beyond your exposure setup |
| Quality control | Yours: characterize background and response for every batch | Made in-house by BSI in Lubbock, Texas |
| Best for | Large areas, unusual geometries, materials research, high volumes, teaching the full process | Measurements that need consistent detectors now |
Compare chip sizes, coatings, and lead times on the PADC track detector product page and the ordering page.
Who casts their own
Who Buys ADC Monomer?
- Detector and materials researchers studying how cure conditions, additives, or dopants change track response and background.
- Large-area and custom-geometry experiments that need sheets, curved pieces, or thicknesses outside standard chip sizes.
- High-volume users such as radon surveys and distributed dosimetry networks that need thousands of detectors and can run their own QC.
- University courses and educators who want students to make the detector, expose it, etch it, and count the tracks. See teaching radiation with track detectors.
- Makers and citizen scientists building their own radiation experiments from the raw material up.
Once your pieces are exposed, you can etch and count them yourself or send them to BSI. Our SEM + AI track analysis service returns counts, flux, species, energy and LET distributions, and angle of arrival, whether the detector came from us or from your own oven.
Frequently asked questions
ADC Monomer FAQ
What is ADC monomer?
ADC monomer is allyl diglycol carbonate, also called diethylene glycol bis(allyl carbonate), CAS 142-22-3. It is a clear liquid resin that, once mixed with a free-radical initiator and cured with heat, polymerizes into PADC, poly(allyl diglycol carbonate), the hard, optically clear thermoset used for eyeglass lenses and for plastic solid-state nuclear track detectors.
How many track detectors can I make from one gallon of ADC monomer?
One US gallon of ADC monomer weighs about 9.5 lb (4.3 kg) and cures to roughly 3,300 cm³ of solid PADC after about 13% polymerization shrinkage. At 1 mm thick, that is about 3.3 m² of sheet, or about 5,100 one-inch-square pieces in theory. Allowing 20% for edge trim, cutting and rejected castings, plan on roughly 4,100 usable pieces.
Can I make my own plastic nuclear track detectors?
Yes. ADC monomer is mixed with a polymerization initiator, cast in a mold, and heat-cured into solid PADC sheet, which is then cut to size and checked by etching a test piece. Producing detector-grade sheet that is clear, flat, fully cured and low in background depends on process details that BSI shares through paid consulting at $100 per hour.
Is home-cast PADC as good as a commercial track detector?
It can be, but it is not automatic. Track response and background depend on the initiator, how completely the sheet cures, internal stress and surface quality, so every casting batch should be characterized against a known alpha source before you trust its data. If you need ready-to-expose detectors instead, BSI's cast, cut and polished PADC chips start at $2/cm².
How much does ADC monomer cost?
BSI sells ADC monomer at $300 per US gallon, or $200 for a half gallon, which is the minimum order. A half gallon makes about 2,500 one-inch-square, 1 mm thick pieces, and at the gallon price the monomer costs about 6 cents per piece. Initiator, molds and equipment are not included. Bulk pricing is available above 2 gallons.
Can BSI analyze detectors I cast myself?
Yes. Expose your cast pieces, then ship them to BSI for etching, optical or SEM large-area imaging, and AI-assisted track counting, quoted per job. BSI can also consult on casting, cure cycles and calibration at $100 per hour, and states the time spent on every reply so the cost never comes as a surprise.
BSI's ADC monomer is sold under its generic chemical name. It is not affiliated with or endorsed by any other resin, lens, or detector manufacturer, and all trademarks belong to their respective owners.
Next step
Order ADC Monomer
$300 per gallon, or $200 for a half gallon (the minimum order). Tell us how much you need and where it is shipping; above 2 gallons, ask for a bulk quote. Not sure casting is right for you? We will tell you honestly whether ready-made chips are the better fit.