Ok, I remember seeing this episode where the Ghostbusters are driving back to HQ or something and they use their proton packs to catch a criminal. When they shoot their streams at him, it forms a prison cell of with the bars made of neutron beams. Now, wouldn't a neutron beam set someone on fire and kill anything living? So, what the hell. Someone, ANYONE, please explain this to me.

Ghostbusted!
that's when the GBs became the Crimebusters!

yeah, i know the episode, i just need an explaination

Egon modified the streams in that episode, I believe. The way he had it set up it couldn't harm anyone, just encapture them in a forcefield.

Yeah. I remember that one too. From what comes to mind, The GBs were on a drought with business. No ghosts, no calls, nothing. Then somewhere along the way they turn to crimebusting once they get the equipment modified. Janine gets kidnapped along the way and the guys save her. They take down some big crime boss and once again they don't have any business. Then they get a call about a ghost and things go back to normal. And if I'm right that's a rather short and off the wall summary of the episode. So in an answer to the question, the equipment was just modified so it would hold a human for a period of time.