Husin Wagiran

The thermoluminescence response of doped SiO2 optical fibres subjected to photon and electron irradiations.

Modern linear accelerators, the predominant teletherapy machine in major radiotherapy centres worldwide, provide multiple electron and photon beam energies. To obtain reasonable treatment times, intense electron beam currents are achievable. In association with this capability, there is considerable demand to validate patient dose using systems of dosimetry offering characteristics that include good spatial resolution, high precision and accuracy. Present interest is in the thermoluminescence response and dosimetric utility of commercially available doped optical fibres. The important parameter for obtaining the highest TL yield during this study is to know the dopant concentration of the SiO2 fibre because during the production of the optical fibres, the dopants tend to diffuse. To achieve this aim, proton-induced X-ray emission (PIXE), which has no depth resolution but can unambiguously identify elements and analyse for trace elements with detection limits approaching microg/g, was used. For Al-doped fibres, the dopant concentration in the range 0.98-2.93 mol% have been estimated, with equivalent range for Ge-doped fibres being 0.53-0.71 mol%. In making central-axis irradiation measurements a solid water phantom was used. For 6-MV photons and electron energies in the range 6, 9 and 12 MeV, a source to surface distance of 100 cm was used, with a dose rate of 400 cGy/min for photons and electrons. The TL measurements show a linear dose-response over the delivered range of absorbed dose from 1 to 4 Gy. Fading was found to be minimal, less than 10% over five days subsequent to irradiation. The minimum detectable dose for 6-MV photons was found to be 4, 30 and 900 microGy for TLD-100 chips, Ge- and Al-doped fibres, respectively. For 6-, 9- and 12-MeV electron energies, the minimum detectable dose were in the range 3-5, 30-50 and 800-1400 microGy for TLD-100 chip, Ge-doped and Al-doped fibres, respectively.

The thermoluminescence response of doped SiO2 optical fibres subjected to alpha-particle irradiation

Ion beams are used in radiotherapy to deliver a more precise dose to the target volume while minimizing dose to the surrounding healthy tissue. For optimum dose monitoring in ion-beam therapy, it is essential to be able to measure the delivered dose with a sensitivity, spatial resolution and dynamic range that is sufficient to meet the demands of the various therapy situations. Optical fibres have been demonstrated by this group to show promising thermoluminescence properties with respect to photon, electron and proton irradiation. In particular, and also given the flexibility and small size of optical fibre cores, for example 125.0+/-0.1 microm for the Al- and Ge-doped fibres used in this study, these fibres have the potential to fulfill the above requirements. This study investigates the thermoluminescence dosimetric characteristics of variously doped SiO(2) optical fibres irradiated with alpha particles from (241)Am. Following subtraction of the gamma contribution from the above source, the thermoluminescence characteristics of variously doped SiO(2) optical fibres have been compared with that of TLD-100 rods. The irradiations were performed in a bell jar. Of related potential significance is the effective atomic number, Z(eff) of the fibre, modifying measured dose from that deposited in tissues; in the present work, a scanning electron microscope and associated energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy facility have been used to provide evaluation of Z(eff). For Ge-doped fibres, the effective atomic numbers value was 11.4, the equivalent value for Al-doped fibres was 12.3. This paper further presents results on dose response and the glow curves obtained. The results obtained indicate there to be good potential for use of variously doped SiO(2) optical fibres in measuring ion-beam doses in radiotherapeutic applications.

Low-dose photon irradiation response of Ge and Al-doped SiO2 optical fibres.

We have investigated the thermoluminescent response and fading characteristics of germanium- and aluminium-doped SiO(2) optical fibres. These optical fibres were placed in a solid phantom and irradiated using 6 and 10 MV photon beams at doses ranging from 0.02 to 0.24 Gy delivered using a linear accelerator. In fading studies, the TL measurements were continued up to 14 days post-irradation. We have investigated the linearity of TL response as a function of dose for Ge-, Al-doped optical fibre and TLD-100 obtained for 6 and 10 MV photon irradiations. We have concentrated on doses that represent a small fraction of that delivered to the tumour to establish sensitivity of measurement for peripheral exposures in external beam radiotherapy.

The thermoluminescence response of doped SiO2 optical fibres subjected to fast neutrons

This paper describes a preliminary study of the thermoluminescence (TL) response of doped SiO(2) optical fibres subjected to (241)AmBe neutron irradiation. The TL materials, which comprise Al- and Ge-doped silica fibres, were exposed in close contact with the (241)AmBe source to obtain fast neutron interactions through use of measurements obtained with and without a Cd filter (the filter being made to entirely enclose the fibres). The neutron irradiations were performed for exposure times of 1-, 2-, 3-, 5- and 7-days in a neutron tank filled with water. In this study, use was also made of the Monte Carlo N-particle (MCNP) code version 5 (V5) to simulate the neutron irradiations experiment. It was found that the commercially available Ge-doped and Al-doped optical fibres show a linear dose response subjected to fast neutrons from (241)AmBe source up to seven days of irradiations. The simulation performed using MCNP5 also exhibits a similar pattern, albeit differing in sensitivity. The TL response of Ge-doped fibre is markedly greater than that of the Al-doped fibre, the total absorption cross section for Ge in both the fast and thermal neutrons region being some ten times greater than that of Al.

Isodose mapping of terrestrial gamma radiation dose rate of Selangor state, Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya, Malaysia.

A terrestrial gamma radiation survey for the state of Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya was conducted to obtain baseline data for environmental radiological health practices. Based on soil type, geological background and information from airborne survey maps, 95 survey points statistically representing the study area were determined. The measured doses varied according to geological background and soil types. They ranged from 17 nGy h(-1) to 500 nGy h(-1). The mean terrestrial gamma dose rate in air above the ground was 182 ± 81 nGy h(-1). This is two times higher than the average dose rate of terrestrial gamma radiation in Malaysia which is 92 nGy h(-1) (UNSCEAR 2000). An isodose map was produced to represent exposure rate from natural sources of terrestrial gamma radiation.

Thermoluminescence Responses of Photon and Electron Irradiated Ge- and Al-Doped SiO2 Optical Fibres

We carry out a comparison of the thermoluminescence (TL) response of photon and electron irradiated Ge- and Al-doped SiO2 optical fibres, as well as cross-comparison with that of TLD-100. Irradiation is made with 6 MeV electrons and 6 MV photons, for doses ranging from 0.2 Gy to 4.0 Gy. The commercially available Al- and Gedoped optical fibres produce a linear dose-TL response. The TL yield for both of the doped fibres and also for TLD-100 is greater for electron irradiation than for photon irradiation. The TL yield of the Al-doped fibres is a small fraction of that of Ge-doped fibres (by a factor of 25), the Ge-doped fibres offering a response of 59% of that of TLD-100.

Thermoluminescence response of Ge- and Al-doped optical fibers subjected to low-dose electron irradiation

In this paper, we report quantitative features of the thermoluminescence (TL) responses of commercially available Ge- and Al-doped optical fibers subjected to low-dose electron irradiation. The TL response of Ge-doped optical fibers increases monotonically over the investigated dose range 0.02–0.24 Gy. The Ge-doped optical fibers have a greater response than the Al-doped optical fibers by a factor of at least 15. Results for the doped fibers are also compared with results for TLD-100.

Thermoluminescence properties of the Cu-doped lithium potassium borate glass

Characteristics of lithium potassium borate glasses with various copper concentrations are reported. The glasses were prepared by the melt quenching method and irradiated with photons to doses in the 0.5-4.0 Gy range. Glowing curves, dose response curves, reproducibility of the response, dose threshold, thermal fading and optical bleaching were studied.

Screening heavy metals levels in hair of sanitation workers by X-ray fluorescence analysis

This work presents a study of human hair as a bio-indicator for detection of heavy metals as part of environmental health surveillance programs project to develop a subject of interest in the biomedical and environmental sciences. A total of 34 hair samples were analyzed that consisting of 29 samples from sanitation workers and five samples from students. The hair samples were prepared and treated in accordance to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) recommendations. The concentrations of heavy metals were analyzed using the energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence (EDXRF) technique by X-50 Mobile X-ray Fluorescence (XRF) at Oceanography Institute, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu. The performance of EDXRF analyzer was tested by Standard Reference Material (SRM 2711) Montana Soil which was in good agreement with certified value within 14% deviations except for Hg. While seven heavy metals: Mn, Fe, Ni, Cu, Zn, Se, and Sb were detected in both groups, three additional elements, i.e. As, Hg and Pb, were detected only in sanitation workers group. For sanitation workers group, the mean concentration of six elements, Mn, Fe, Cu, Zn, Se, and Sb, shows elevated concentration as compared to the control samples concentration. Results from both groups were compared and discussed in relation to their respective heavy metals concentrations.

Structural properties of Zinc Lithium borate glass

Zinc Lithium Borate glasses of different composition were prepared with the aim of using it for thermoluminescence dosimetry. Melt quenching method was adopted in this process. Fourier transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and UV-vis-NIR spectroscopy techniques were employed to investigate the infrared spectra and energy band gap of different composition of Zinc Lithium Borate glasses. X-ray diffraction analysis was used to confirm the amorphous nature of the glass samples. Glass forming ability and stability of the glass was checked using Differential thermal analysis (DTA). Density, molar volume, refractive index parameters have been analyzed in the light of different concentration of the modifier. The active vibrational modes of 1200–1600 cm−1 for B-O stretching of BO3 units, 800–1200 cm−1 for B-O stretching of BO4 units and 400–800 cm−1 for bending vibration of various borate segments were detected. Addition of ZnO to lithium borate shows its influence in converting the dominant BO3 group to BO4 group. BO4 are known for creating complex defects, a situation that established deep and stable traps good for thermoluminescence phenomena. From optical data, direct and indirect energy band gap has been calculated using the data obtained from UV-vis-NIR spectroscopy. Both direct and indirect band gaps decrease with the increase of modifier Li2CO3.