KMESS: An open source software package using a semi-empirical mesh-grid method for the modeling of germanium detector efficiencies

Traditional approaches in gamma-ray spectroscopy for determining the absolute full-energy peak efficiencies of germanium detectors are primarily either too time consuming or not economically viable. In addition, these approaches are difficult to use for arbitrary source shapes and counting geometries. An open source software package, KMESS (Kevin's Mesh Efficiency Simulator Software), was developed to address these problems. KMESS uses a new semi-empirical mesh-grid method to predict the absolute full-energy peak efficiencies of n- and p-type germanium detectors in both coaxial and closed-ended configurations. The model assumes that any gamma-ray source shape can be treated as a collection of point sources. The code was written in a modular form, making it easy to adapt for other detector configurations and materials. A suite of web-based graphical front-end tools was also developed to make the execution of KMESS user-friendly. KMESS can predict most full-energy peak efficiencies to within 10% accuracy for the energy range 100--1800 keV in less than 10 minutes.