High-dose characterization of different LiF phosphors

The dose response of three LiF TLDs: standard LiF:Mg,Ti (denoted MTS), high-sensitive LiF:Mg,Cu,P (MCP) and a recently developed in Kraków version of LiF:Mg,Ti with modified activator composition (MTT) and increased high-LET response was measured. The TLDs have been exposed to ⁶⁰Co gamma-rays, up to dose of 10 000 Gy, i.e. beyond saturation dose of the main dosimetric peaks, which corresponds to ca. 1000 Gy. The measured glow-curves were deconvolved into separate peaks with first order kinetic function (using self-developed GlowFit software). The dose response of the main peaks was found to be supralinear for MTS and sublinear for MCP detectors, as expected. The dose response of MTT was found to be even more supralinear than that of MTS. An interesting effect has been observed with regard to glow-curve shape of MCP detectors. Up to a dose of 1 kGy it remains practically unchanged, while for higher doses a strong growth of high-temperature peaks is observed. In the same dose region a decrease of the main peak of MCP with increasing dose is observed, unlike LiF:Mg,Ti detectors.     

Characterization of monoenergetic neutron reference fields with a high resolution diamond detector

A novel radiation detector based on an artificial single crystal diamond was used to characterize in detail the energy distribution of neutron reference fields at the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB) and their contamination with charged particles. The monoenergetic reference fields at PTB in the neutron energy range from 1.5 MeV up to 19 MeV are generated by proton and deuteron beams impinging on solid and gas targets of tritium and deuterium. The energy of the incoming particles and the variation of the angle under which the measurement is performed produce monoenergetic reference fields with different mean energies and line shapes. Well established simulation codes allow these parameters to be calculated in detail, provided the properties of the targets are known.In this paper we present high resolution neutron spectrometry measurements of different monoenergetic reference fields. The results are compared with calculated spectra taking into account the actual target parameters. The influence of deviations from the ideal case, e.g. a non homogeneous tritium distribution in a solid Ti/T-target, was investigated. Line structures in the order of 80 keV for a neutron energy of 9 MeV were resolved. The shift of the mean energy and the increasing of the width of the neutron peak with increasing pressure in the gas target in the order of 30 keV were measured.Another result is the determination of the contamination of the neutron field at 14 MeV with high energy charged particles (protons) from side reactions inside the T-target. This effect is due to the thin backing of the targets in use at PTB. It depends on the age of the target and it has to be taken into consideration for irradiations at small distances for some detectors, especially when very old targets are used.The experiments have shown that this detector is an easy to operate compact neutron spectrometer with extremely good energy resolution and that detailed structures in the line shapes of monoenergetic neutron fields can be resolved without using time-of-flight techniques.     

Assessment of undesirable dose to eye-melanoma patients after proton radiotherapy

Radiotherapy with a proton beam of initial energy 55–80 MeV is presently the clinically recommended therapy for some cases of intraocular melanoma such as large melanomas or tumours adjacent to critical organs. Evaluation and optimization of radiation doses outside the treatment volume may contribute to reducing undesirable side-effects and decreasing the risk of occurrence of secondary cancers, particularly for paediatric patients. In this work the undesired doses to organs were assessed basing on Monte Carlo calculation of secondary radiation transport and on results of measurements of neutron and γ-ray doses at the proton therapy facility of the Institute of Nuclear Physics at Kraków. Dosimetry was performed using a He-3-based FHT 762 neutron monitor (Wendi II), a FH40G proportional counter (for γ-rays), and MTS-7 (LiF:Mg,Ti) thermoluminescence detectors (TLDs). Organ doses were calculated in the ADAM anthropomorphic phantom using the MCNPX Monte Carlo transport code and partly verified, for γ-ray doses, with TLD measurements in the RANDO Anderson anthropomorphic phantom. The effective dose due to undesired radiation, including exposure from scattered radiation during the entire process of proton radiotherapy and patient positioning using X-rays, does not exceed 1 mSv.     

Drastic effects of fast neutrons and γ-irradiation on the DC conductivity of Co-, Ni-, Mn- and Ag-gelatin doped films

The effect of fast neutron fluencies and γ-rays on the DC conductivity, ln(σ), for pure gelatin and that doped with 5, 10, and 15 wt% of CoCl₂ · 6H₂O, and 5 wt% of NiCl₂ · 6H₂O, MnCl₂ · 2H₂O and AgNO₃ has been respectively investigated at different temperatures. Fast neutron fluencies and γ-rays doses are set from 7.60 × 10⁵ to 0.50 × 10⁹ N/cm², and 0.25 up to 1.50 Gy, respectively. The calculated values of activation energies (E_a) are found to be dependent on the radiation doses. The conductivity of gelatin samples shows an interesting behavior, which depends on the dopant Co concentration and the exposure dose. DC conductivity of the investigated samples reveals that the ionic conduction has been established at higher temperatures and fast neutron fluencies and γ-rays doses, while the electronic one plays an important role at lower temperatures. This has been related to the crosslinking formations as a result of the interaction between the exposure dose and gelatin sample. The attained results suggest strongly the applicability of these materials in dosimetry.     

Channel tortuosity of long laboratory sparks

Channel tortuosity of 50 cm long laboratory sparks were measured by analyzing a set of images taken by three cameras. The cameras were placed at a radial distance of 200 cm from the spark gap. The angle between any two cameras was 120°. The sparks were generated between a steel rod and a plane electrode. The distribution of the direction change of the channel was found to be Gaussian with a standard deviation of 15.3°. The average tortuosity of the channel defined as the mean absolute value of the direction change was 11.8±1.4°, which is smaller than the average tortuosity of natural lightning and close to the tortuosity of triggered lightning. The average tortuosity is dependent on the segment length used in calculating the direction change. A gradual increase in the average tortuosity (0.08°/cm) was seen when the sparks propagated towards the plane electrode.     

Step feature observed in the angular dependence of magnetization switching fields in GaMnAs micro-device

The magnetization switching phenomena of GaMnAs Hall devices have been investigated by using the planar Hall effect (PHE) measurement. Though two different sizes of Hall bar devices, width of 300 and of 10 μm, show very similar Curie temperature, their magnetization switching fields behave significantly different. While the angle dependence of magnetization switching field of the 300 μm device showed typical rectangular shape behavior with an applied magnetic field angle in the polar plot, that of the 10 μm device exhibited large step at 〈1 1 0〉 crystallographic directions, breaking the continuity of the switching field in angle dependence. Such unusual phenomenon observed in the 10 μm device was discussed in terms of the change in magnetic anisotropy by the fabrication of micro-device.     

Incident angle and temperature dependence of WSi wire-grid polarizer

The dependences of the incident angle and thermal durability of a tungsten silicide (WSi) wire-grid polarizer were examined. A WSi grating with a 0.5 fill factor, 260 nm depth, and 400 nm period was formed on a Si surface using two-beam interference and dry etching. The TM transmission spectrum of the fabricated element was greater than 60% at the incident angle of θ = 40° (the angle between the incident direction and the perpendicular axis to the grating direction) in the 4–10 μm wavelength range. An extinction ratio of 22.2 dB was achieved at 2.5 μm wavelength. Additionally, results show that this polarizer has higher thermal resistance than that of commercial infrared polarizers. Therefore, this polarizer is effective for taking a polarized thermal image of high temperatures.     

Field cooling-induced magnetic anisotropy in exchange biased CoO/Fe bilayer studied by ferromagneticresonance

Exchange-biased CoO/Fe bilayer grown on MgO (0 0 1) substrate by sputtering, studied by variable angle and temperature ferromagnetic resonance. Room temperature in-plane measurements reveal that the Fe layer was epitaxially grown on MgO substrate with a fourfold cubic symmetry. The data also show that the easy axis of magnetization is in the film plane and makes an angle of 45° with the [1 0 0] crystallographic direction of MgO substrate. The low temperature data exhibit a sudden onset of a field cooling-induced and shifted cubic anisotropy below the Néel temperature of CoO. This results in a twofold uniaxial or fourfold cubic symmetry for in-plane magnetic anisotropy depending on a field cooling direction. Low temperature measurements also present a reduction in the resonance fields due to the antiferromagnetic/ferromagnetic coupling. The developed theoretical model perfectly simulates the experimental data of coupled CoO/Fe bilayer.     

Width and temperature dependence of lithography-induced magnetic anisotropy in (Ga,Mn)As wires

In-plane magnetic anisotropy of 40-μm-long (Ga,Mn)As wires with different widths (0.4, 1.0, and 20 μm) has been investigated between 5 and 75 K by measuring anisotropic magneto-resistance (AMR). The wires show in-plane 〈1 0 0〉 cubic and [−1 1 0] uniaxial anisotropies, and an additional lithography-induced anisotropy along the wire direction in narrow wires with width of 0.4 and 1.0 μm. We derive the temperature dependence of the cubic, uniaxial, and lithography-induced anisotropy constants from the results of AMR, and find that a sizable anisotropy can be provided by lithographic means, which allows us to control and detect the magnetization reversal process by choosing the direction of the external magnetic fields.     

Lattice dynamics and inelastic neutron scattering experiments on andalusite,Al2SiO5

We report coherent inelastic neutron scattering measurements of the phonon dispersion relations and lattice dynamics shell model calculations of several microscopic and macroscopic properties of andalusite, Al₂SiO₅. Andalusite has an orthorhombic structure with 32 atoms/unit cell. The inelastic neutron scattering measurements (up to energy transfers of 45 meV) were carried out using the triple axis spectrometer at Dhruva reactor, India using a single crystal of andalusite and the phonon dispersion relations along the [100] direction have been measured. The shell model calculations have been used to compute the crystal structure, elastic constants, phonon frequencies, dispersion relations, density of states and the specific heat. The calculated results are in good agreement with available experimental data. The computed one-phonon neutron scattering structure factors based on the shell model have been very useful in the planning and analysis of the inelastic neutron scattering experiments.     

Skin dose assessment in unmodulated and intensity-modulated radiation fields with film dosimetry

Superficial dose from 6- and 18-MV photon beams has been studied by measuring surface dose and shallow build-up dose using radiographic film EDR2, radiochromic film EBT2 and plane-parallel chamber. Measurements have been made for intensity- and non-intensity-modulated beams.The results show that the surface dose was found to be 19.8% and 10% of maximum dose in unmodulated fields for 6 and 18 MV photon beams, respectively. The study further showed that intensity modulation decreased surface dose by 1.1% and 0.7% for the same field size at 6 and 18 MV, respectively, and surface dose was dropped by magnetically sweeping contaminating electrons. EDR2 and EBT2 films show in good agreement in shallow build-up region.This study demonstrated the capability of EDR2 film, in addition to radiochromic film, to measure surface and build-up dose in case of treatment planning system uncertainties with regard to skin toxicity or shallow target coverage.     

Study of the microstructure and mechanical properties of white clam shell

The microstructure and mechanical properties of white clam shell were investigated, respectively. It can be divided into horny layer, prismatic layer and nacreous layer. Crossed-lamellar structure was the microstructural characteristic. The extension direction of lamellae in prismatic layer was different from that in nacreous layer, which formed an angle on the interface between prismatic layer and nacreous layer. The phase component of three layers was CaCO₃ with crystallization morphology of aragonite, which confirmed the crossed-lamellar structural characteristic. White calm shell exhibited perfect mechanical properties. The microhardness values of three layers were 273 HV, 240 HV and 300 HV, respectively. The average values of flexure and compression strength were 110.2 MPa and 80.1 MPa, respectively. The macroscopical cracks crossed the lamellae and finally terminated within the length range of about 80 μm. It was the microstructure characteristics, the angle on the interface between prismatic and nacreous layer and the hardness diversity among the different layers that enhanced mechanical properties of white calm shell.     

Radiological impacts of natural radioactivity from phosphogypsum piles in Huelva (Spain)

The activity concentrations of ²²⁶Ra, ²³²Th and ⁴⁰K have been measured by gamma spectroscopy in samples of soil collected from the different zones of around Huelva (Spain). The average activity concentrations of ²²⁶Ra (Bq kg^?1) in the active phosphogypsum (PG) stacks, unrestored and restored zones were 647, 573 and 83 respectively. The corresponding values for ²³²Th and ⁴⁰K (Bq kg^?1) were 8, 10 and 25 and 33, 47 and 225 respectively. As a measure of radiation hazard to the occupational workers and public, the Ra equivalent activities, representative level index and dose rates due to natural radionuclides at 1 m above the ground surface were estimated. The average of absorbed dose rates due to ²²⁶Ra, ²³²Th and ⁴⁰K (nGy/h) from active PG stacks, unrestored and restored zones are 284, 255 and 55.The calculated external γ-radiation average dose (mSv/y) received by the workers of the phosphogypsum piles are estimated to be 0.293, 0.262 and 0.057 which is far below the international agreed dose limit of 20 mSv/y (ICRP-60, 1990) for workers. Also, the radiation dose to a member of the public resulting from the use of PG is negligible compared to the average annual effective dose from natural sources (2.4 mSv/y).     

Multi-spectral antireflection coating on zinc sulphide simultaneously effective in visible,eye safe laser wave length and MWIR region

In recent years multi-spectral device is steadily growing popularity. Multi-spectral antireflection coating effective in visible region for sighting system, laser wavelength for ranging and MWIR region for thermal system can use common objective/receiver optics highly useful for state of art thermal instrumentation. In this paper, design and fabrication of antireflection coating simultaneously effective in visible region (450–650 nm), Eye safe laser wave length (1540 nm) and MWIR region (3.6–4.9 μm) has been reported. Comprehensive search method of design was used and the number of layers in the design was optimised with lowest evaluated merit function studied with respect to various layers. Finally eight-layer design stack was established using hafnium oxide as high index layer and silicon-di-oxide as low index coating material combination. The multilayer stack had been fabricated by using electron beam gun evaporation system in Symphony 9 vacuum coating unit. During layer deposition the substrate was irradiated with End-Hall ion gun. The evaporation was carried out in presence of oxygen and layer thicknesses were measured with crystal monitor. The result achieved for the antireflection coating was 85% average transmission from 450 to 650 nm in visible region, 95% transmission at 1540 nm and 96% average transmission from 3.6 to 4.9 μm in MWIR region.     

Retrospective dosimetry using Japanese brick quartz: A way forward despite an unstable fast decaying OSL signal

Quartz extracted from heated bricks has been previously suggested for use in dose estimation in accident dosimetry, but this technique has never been applied before to Japanese quartz which often has unusual OSL characteristics. In this study the optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) characteristics of quartz extracted from a Japanese commercial red brick produced by Mishima – Renga – Seizoujyo Co. are studied. These companies are based in the Aichi Prefecture (capital Nagoya), which accounts for about half of the red brick production in Japan. A comparison of TL (thermoluminescence) and OSL signals has been carried out towards identification of common source traps. It is observed that OSL from Japanese brick quartz shows unusual luminescence characteristics; in particular, the initial fast decaying OSL signal contains a dominant (>90%) thermally unstable component related to the 85 °C TL peak, which necessitates a prior heat treatment. A single-aliquot regenerative-dose (SAR) protocol is developed and tested using thermal treatments intended to isolate a stable dosimetric signal. A minimum detection limit of ～65 mGy is then estimated using this protocol. Following irradiation using ⁶⁰Co and ¹³⁷Cs, dose–depth profiles were measured on two different commercial brick types (Mishima – Renga – Seizoujyo Co. and Hase – Renga Co.) with 5 Gy and 10 Gy surface doses. The profiles derived from the two sources were readily distinguishable. It is concluded that the OSL signals from the two types of Japanese brick quartz examined here can be used to derive precise estimates of accident dose, and, possibly to distinguish between sources of gamma radiation in a nuclear accident.To our knowledge, this is the first report on the existence of an unstable fast decaying OSL signal in quartz derived from bricks, and demonstrates a way forward with such samples in retrospective dosimetry.     

Exposure to indoor radon and natural gamma radiation in public workplaces in north-western Greece

Measurements of indoor radon levels and gamma dose rates were performed in 42 workplaces in Ioannina, north-western Greece. Radon concentrations followed a log-normal distribution with an arithmetic mean of 95 ± 51 Bq m^?3. In all cases, radon levels were below 400 Bq m^?3, which is the action level implemented by the Greek Regulation for Radiation Protection, in accordance with the European Commission recommendation. Comparing summer and winter measurements, no statistically significant seasonal variation was established. However, radon concentrations measured in basement and ground floor workplaces were significantly higher (p < 0.01) than those measured in the first and upper floors. Annual effective dose rates from inhalation of radon and its decay products were estimated to be in the range from 0.13 to 1.36 mSv y^?1 with a mean value of 0.62 mSv y^?1. Indoor exposure to natural gamma radiation entailed an average effective dose rate of 0.13 mSv y^?1, of which approximately 62% was due to terrestrial and the rest due to cosmic sources. The reported data contribute to the assessment of radon distribution and dose estimate at the national level.     

Marine environment compatible antireflection coating with nanotop layer on silicon optics

Antireflection coating on silicon optics have crucial importance in thermal device working in 3.6–4.9 μm wavelength region. When the thermal device is used in marine environment, the optics face harsh saline weather condition compared to normal field environment. This deteriorates coated optics and to improve mechanical strength of the coating, a nanotop layer on the antireflection coating has been developed. In this paper a study has been carried out to improve marine environment compatibility by employing a nanolayer on the top of antireflection coating on silicon optics. Optimac synthesis method was used to design the multilayer stack on the substrate with germanium and IR-F625 as high/low refractive index respectively and the layer number was restricted to four layers. The top nanolayer was 60 ± 2 nm thick hafnium dioxide layer developed with ion assisted deposition (End–Hall) on the optics during coating process. The deposition of multilayer coating was carried out inside the coating plant fitted with cryo pump and residual gas analyzer. The evaporation was carried out at high vacuum (2–6 × 10⁻⁶ mbar) using electron beam gun and layer thicknesses were measured with crystal monitor. The average transmission achieved was 97% in the spectral band of 3.6–4.9 μm with a hardness of 9.7 GPa on the coated optics.     

High spatial resolution imaging in a clipping Kagomé lattice photonic crystal

In this paper, a two-dimensional Kagomé lattice photonic crystal (PC) made of GaAs (ɛ = 12.96) dielectric rods in air is considered. This Kagomé lattice PC has an effective refractive index n_eff = −1 at a low normalized frequency ω = 0.187 × 2πc/a. Imaging quality and the capability of the super-resolution of two point sources are studied for a superlens made of such PC structure. In order to achieve a high quality image and to improve the spatial super-resolution of two sources, a clipping Kagomé lattice PC is designed. Results simulated by finite-difference time-domain method show that imaging quality and super-resolution of two sources can be enhanced greatly as the perfect Kagomé lattice structure are superseded by the clipping Kagomé lattice structure. Coupled-mode theory analysis gives an explanation why the clipping structure is superior to the perfect one for both the imaging quality and the capability of the super-resolution of two sources. This clipping Kagomé lattice PC structure would be widely used in optical devices and integrated circuit.     

Thorium free antireflection coating in MWIR region on Silicon optics

Most infrared transmitting optics have high refractive indices which in turn have high per surface reflection loss. So antireflection coating has very important role in increasing the transmission in the desired wavelength region. In this paper a study has been carried out on the design and fabrication of Thorium free antireflection coating effective for Silicon substrate in MWIR (3.6–4.9 μm) region. The wave band 3.6–4.9 μm is chosen for the reported work because the detected system used in MWIR region has a band selection filter effective in the same wavelength region. Comprehensive search method was used to design the multilayer stack on Silicon substrate. The coating materials used in the design were Germanium (Ge) and Silicon dioxide (SiO₂). The fabrication of coating was made in a coating plant fitted with Cryo pump system and Residual Gas Analyzer. The evaporation was carried out at high vacuum (2–6 × 10–6 mbar) using Electron Beam Gun and layer thicknesses were measured with crystal monitor. The result achieved for the antireflection coating was 96% average transmission in 3.6–4.9 μm band which withstood MIL-F-48616 environmental testing. This work provides an alternate antireflection coating on Silicon by replacing radioactive Thorium Fluoride, used as a coating material in most IR antireflection coating designs.     

Simulation study using GEANT4 Monte Carlo code for a Gd-coated resistive plate chamber as a thermal neutron detector

The Resistive Plate Chamber (RPC) has been developed in many application areas ever since its introduction, from high energy physics experiments to positron emission tomography. Such detectors can be coated with a Gd layer that enables them to detect thermal neutrons. Consequently these RPCs can be utilized for industrial and medical purposes. Here, we present the configuration of a resistive plate chamber which is utilized to detect thermal neutrons by employing GEANT4 Monte Carlo code. The response of the RPC was evaluated as a function of neutron energy in the GEANT4 Monte Carlo code. The simulation results are taken for incident neutron energy in the energy range from 25 meV to 100 meV. The detection efficiency was found to be between 10% and 20%, depending on the detector configuration, for incident thermal neutrons of 25 meV energy.