In this work, (99 - x)CaSO
-Dy
O
-xEu
O
, (where x = 0, 0.05, 0.1, 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, 0.5) thermoluminescence phosphors were prepared using a coprecipitation method. The thermoluminescence (TL) dosimetry ...(TLD) characteristics such as TL sensitivity, dose-response, minimum detectable dose, thermal fading, and the effect of sunlight on the prepared phosphors were investigated. The obtained results indicated that the most sensitive phosphor was obtained at x = 0.05. Large thermal fading of 6% after 1 h and 26% after 24 h from irradiation followed by 71% after 1 month with no additional fading was observed within a time frame exceeding 2 months throughout the remaining duration of the investigation, which also spanned over 2 months. Despite the phosphor's high fading rate, the relative sensitivity of the prepared samples was ~90% compared with TLD-100. The marked effect of day sunlight was also determined. High dose-response within the low-dose range from 0.01 to 5 Gy was observed. The obtained results suggested that the synthesized phosphor is well suited for applications involving radiation biology and radiotherapy dosimetry.
The study presents a novel approach to analysing the thermoluminescence (TL) glow curves (GCs) of CaSO
:Dy-based personnel monitoring dosimeters using machine learning (ML). This study demonstrates ...the qualitative and quantitative impact of different types of anomalies on the TL signal and trains ML algorithms to estimate correction factors (CFs) to account for these anomalies. The results show a good degree of agreement between the predicted and actual CFs, with a coefficient of determination greater than 0.95, a root mean square error less than 0.025, and a mean absolute error less than 0.015. The use of ML algorithms leads to a significant two-fold reduction in the coefficient of variation of TL counts from anomalous GCs. This study proposes a promising approach to address anomalies caused by dosimeter, reader, and handling-related factors. Furthermore, it accounts for non-radiation-induced TL at low dose levels towards improving the dosimetric accuracy in personnel monitoring.
Dosimetry in ultra-high dose rate (UHDR) electron beamlines poses a significant challenge owing to the limited usability of standard dosimeters in high dose and high dose-per-pulse (DPP) ...applications.
In this study, Al
O
:C nanoDot optically stimulated luminescent dosimeters (OSLDs), single-use powder-based LiF:Mg,Ti thermoluminescent dosimeters (TLDs), and Gafchromic EBT3 film were evaluated at extended dose ranges (up to 40 Gy) in conventional dose rate (CONV) and UHDR beamlines to determine their usability for calibration and dose verification in the setting of FLASH radiation therapy.
OSLDs and TLDs were evaluated against established dose-rate-independent Gafchromic EBT3 film with regard to the potential influence of mean dose rate, instantaneous dose rate, and DPP on signal response. The dosimeters were irradiated at CONV or UHDR conditions on a 9-MeV electron beam. Under UHDR conditions, different settings of pulse repetition frequency (PRF), pulse width (PW), and pulse amplitude were used to characterize the individual dosimeters' response in order to isolate their potential dependencies on dose, dose rate, and DPP.
The OSLDs, TLDs, and Gafchromic EBT3 film were found to be suitable at a dose range of up to 40 Gy without any indication of saturation in signal. The response of OSLDs and TLDs in UHDR conditions were found to be independent of mean dose rate (up to 1440 Gy/s), instantaneous dose rate (up to 2 MGy/s), and DPP (up to 7 Gy), with uncertainties on par with nominal values established in CONV beamlines (± 4%). In cross-comparing the response of OSLDs, TLDs and Gafchromic film at dose rates of 0.18-245 Gy/s, the coefficient of variation or relative standard deviation in the measured dose between the three dosimeters (inter-dosimeter comparison) was found to be within 2%.
We demonstrated the dynamic range of OSLDs, TLDs, and Gafchromic film to be suitable up to 40 Gy, and we developed a protocol that can be used to accurately translate the measured signal in each respective dosimeter to dose. OSLDs and powdered TLDs were shown to be viable for dosimetric measurement in UHDR beamlines, providing dose measurements with accuracies on par with Gafchromic EBT3 film and their concurrent use demonstrating a means for redundant dosimetry in UHDR conditions.
Ge-doped silica fibre (GDSF) thermoluminescence dosimeters (TLD) are non-hygroscopic spatially high-resolution radiation sensors with demonstrated potential for radiotherapy dosimetry applications. ...The INTRABEAM
system with spherical applicators, one of a number of recent electronic brachytherapy sources designed for intraoperative radiotherapy (IORT), presents a representative challenging dosimetry situation, with a low keV photon beam and a desired rapid dose-rate fall-off close-up to the applicator surface. In this study, using the INTRABEAM
system, investigations were made into the potential application of GDSF TLDs for in vivo IORT dosimetry. The GDSFs were calibrated over the respective dose- and depth-range 1 to 20 Gy and 3 to 45 mm from the x-ray probe. The effect of different sizes of spherical applicator on TL response of the fibres was also investigated. The results show the GDSF TLDs to be applicable for IORT dose assessment, with the important incorporated correction for beam quality effects using different spherical applicator sizes. The total uncertainty in use of this type of GDSF for dosimetry has been found to range between 9.5% to 12.4%. Subsequent in vivo measurement of skin dose for three breast patients undergoing IORT were performed, the measured doses being below the tolerance level for acute radiation toxicity.
A Eu
-activated Ca
Mg
(PO
)
phosphor was prepared at high temperature (800°C) using a solid-state reaction method. The crystal structure, phase formation of the prepared phosphor was characterized ...using X-ray diffraction patterns and Fourier transformed infrared analysis. The luminescence properties of the synthesized phosphor were characterized using photoluminescence and thermoluminescence techniques. The prepared phosphor showed two emission peaks at 594 nm with an orange colour due to the
D
→
F
transition and at 612 nm a red colour due to the
D
→
F
transition under 396 nm near-UV excitation. The prepared phosphors were irradiated with different doses of γ-rays from a
Co gamma irradiation source. Thermoluminescence glow curves for this sample phosphor were obtained using a Nucleonix 1009I TL reader. Synthesized phosphor samples were exposed to a 3.6 kGy dose of γ-rays. The thermoluminescence glow curve of the Ca
Mg
(PO
)
:0.05 mol%Eu
phosphor showed maximum intensity at all concentrations of Eu
ions. The Ca
Mg
(PO
)
:0.05 mol%Eu
phosphor was irradiated with different doses of
Co γ-irradiation and a linear response was observed between 0.6 kGy and 3.6 kGy. Trapping parameters such as activation energy, frequency factor and order of kinetics were calculated. The CIE chromaticity diagram showed the colour coordinates of the synthesized phosphor in the orange and red regions of the visible spectrum; this spectral feature revealed high colour purity and excellent chromaticity coordinate characteristics. Photoluminescence and thermoluminescence properties revealed that the prepared phosphor could be a potential red-emitting phosphor for eco-friendly white light generation and an excellent thermoluminescent dosimeter material for thermoluminescence dosimetric applications.
Early works that used thermoluminescent dosimeters (TLDs) to measure absorbed dose from alpha particles reported relatively high variation (10%) between TLDs, which is undesirable for modern ...dosimetry applications. This work outlines a method to increase precision for absorbed dose measured using TLDs with alpha-emitting radionuclides by applying an alpha-specific chip factor (CF) that individually characterizes the TLD sensitivity to alpha particles. Variation between TLDs was reduced from 21.8% to 6.7% for the standard TLD chips and 7.9% to 3.3% for the thin TLD chips. It has been demonstrated by this work that TLD-100 can be calibrated to precisely measure the absorbed dose to water from alpha-emitting radionuclides.
•TLDs used to measure absorbed dose from alpha particles have shown high variation.•5.304 MeV alpha particles have a range of only 21 μm in TLDs.•Alpha Particles interact with a small percentage of the total TLD sensitive volume.•Alpha-Specific chip factors characterize TLD sensitivity to alpha particles.•TLD precision was increased when alpha-specific chip factors were applied.
This article presents the effect of europium (Eu) doping on the thermoluminescence (TL) of ultraviolet (UV-254 nm) and gamma irradiated triclinic Mg
B
O
nanophosphors. The diffuse reflectance ...predicts slight decrease in band gap from 5.18 to 4.99 eV with increasing Eu (1%, 3%, and 5%) content in Mg
B
O
. The TL glow curves of UV irradiated samples comprised of a main peak around 500 K with weak intensity peak/shoulders in low temperature region. Interestingly Eu (3%) doped Mg
B
O
shows maximum TL intensity with suppression of low temperature shoulder peaks and almost linear UV dose dependent TL response. However, in the case of gamma irradiated Eu (1% and 3% doped) samples, TL glow curve comprises of a main peak around 425-445 K and closely lying peak around 500-515 K with relatively lesser intensity. In case of Eu (5%) doped samples, TL peak around 508 K starts dominating over peak around 425 K. TL of both UV and gamma irradiated samples showed the presence of various deep and shallow defect states within the bandgap of materials having different kinetic parameters, which were determined using TLanal software based on Kiti's general order equation. The present study shows that Eu doped Mg
B
O
nanophosphors can be tuned for UV and gamma dosimetry.
A trivalent Dy
-activated K
Ca
(SO
)
F fluoride-based phosphor was synthesized using a solid-state reaction method and characterized for its thermoluminescence (TL) application. The crystal structure ...and surface morphology of the as-synthesized material was analyzed using X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. A series of the K
Ca
(SO
)
F:Dy
phosphor was irradiated using γ-rays from a
Co source and TL glow curves were recorded using a Nucleonix 1009I TL reader. The glow curve of the prepared phosphor showed a prominent single peak at 278°C. TL characteristics were maximum intensity at 1 mol% of Dy
ion with a single TL glow peak. The TL glow curve revealed linearity with increase in exposure dose range from 0.1 kGy to 3.0 kGy. Theoretical analysis of the TL glow curve of the γ-ray-irradiated sample was carried out using a computerized glow curve deconvolution method and trapping parameters such as activation energy and frequency factor were calculated using the initial rise method and Ilich's method. The synthesized Dy
-doped K
Ca
(SO
)
phosphor revealed excellent TL properties and was found to be a potential candidate for dosimetric applications.
The aim of this paper is the characterization of four thermoluminescence detectors (TLD), namely, LiF:Mg,Ti, LiF:Mg,Cu,P, Li2B4O7:Mn and Li2B4O7:Cu for the measurement of the entrance surface air ...kerma (ESAK) and estimation of the mean glandular dose (MGD) in digital mammography examinations at hospitals and clinics. Low-energy x-ray beams in the typical energy ranges of mammography, produced with a tungsten target and additional 60 µm molybdenum filtration were implemented and characterized at the Laboratory of Metrology of Ionizing Radiation at Instituto Superior Técnico. These beams were used for the characterization of the TLDs in terms of sensitivity, linearity, reproducibility, energy dependence and fading at 40 °C. The energy dependence test was further extended using clinical beams produced by mammography units at hospitals and clinics. The method proposed by the International Atomic Energy Agency was used for the measurement of ESAK and assessment of MGD. The combined standard uncertainty for the measurement of ESAK (and MGD) was determined in accordance to the Guide to the expression of uncertainty in measurement. The x-ray beams generated in the 23-40 kVp range presented HVL values from 0.36 to 0.46 mm Al. The beam produced at 28 kVp (HVL 0.39 mm Al) was considered as reference. The radiation field defined a circle with 84 mm diameter with a maximum variation of the beam intensity of less than 1% at the top flat (plateau) within 4 cm of the central axis. The estimated total uncertainty for the measurement of air kerma was 0.42%. All the TL detectors tested showed good performance except the commercial Li2B4O7:Mn (or TLD-800) which was excluded due to its poor sensitivity in our experimental set up. Both lithium fluorides showed better linearity and reproducibility as well as lower energy dependence and fading when compared to lithium borates. The stable behaviour of LiF:Mg,Ti and LiF:Mg,Cu,P detectors is reflected in the low combined standard uncertainty of ±5.6% and ±4.3% respectively (or ±5.1% and ±3.6% if fading is neglected). In general a total combined uncertainty lower than ±10% for the measurement of ESAK was obtained for the four TL materials studied.
Calibration of Thermo Luminescent Dosimetry (TLD) in eye lens dosimeter requires a standard phantom. The use of anthropomorphic phantoms in calibration needs evaluation.
This study aimed to analyze ...the angular response of the TLD on the fabricated 3D anthropomorphic head phantom and Computerized Imaging Reference Systems (CIRS)- Computed Tomography (CT) dose phantom as a standard phantom irradiated with Cs-137 and to compare the absorbed dose and linear attenuation for both phantoms. H
(3) analysis, conversion coefficient (h
(3)), and calibration factor (CF) are also investigated.
In this experimental study, the fabricated 3D printed anthropomorphic head phantom was analyzed using polylactic acid (PLA) with the skull and then filled with the artificial brain and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) as a test phantom. TLD-700H and TLD Reader Harshaw 6600 plus were used to analyze the angular response of Cs-137 radiation and to determine the absorbed dose and linear attenuation coefficient of test and standard phantoms.
The effect of the angle of radiation source towards TLD reading at the anthropomorphic head phantom has a similar value to the standard phantom with a calibration factor ranging from 0.82 to 1. The absorbed dose measurement and the linear attenuation coefficient of the anthropomorphic head phantom with the standard phantom have different values of 2.52 and 3.78%, respectively.
The fabricated 3D printed anthropomorphic head phantom has good potential as an alternative to standard phantoms for TLD calibration in eye lens dosimeter.
