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The Radiation Physics Division's accelerator facilities continue to support a broad range of research efforts in the areas of industrial and medical dosimetry
The construction of a new primary calibration facility for air kerma measurements has been completed. It delivers a collimated 137Cs gamma-ray beam in which
Check standards are used by the NIST Radiation Physics Division to monitor the performance of the alanine dosimetry system that is central to its high-dose
The high-dose dosimetry program supports radiation-processing applications by assuring that the absorbed dose to the product, often prescribed or limited by
Calorimetry based upon remote sensing of the temperature field in an irradiated volume would offer distinct advantages for the dosimetry of nonstandard beams
NIST is in its eighth decade of providing critically evaluated, comprehensive databases of cross-section information for ionizing photons (x and gamma rays)
The fundamental photon and charged particle interaction data and the radiation transport methods, pioneered and developed at NIST to calculate the penetration
Three dosimetry calibration laboratories accredited by the American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM) routinely perform calibrations of a large
The Dosimetry Group maintains and disseminates the national measurement standards for air-kerma (exposure) from 137Cs and 60Co gamma-ray beams and for absorbed
NIST calibrates certain user-owned encapsulated beta-particle sources and certain standards laboratory transfer instruments for applications in radiation
Small radioactive "seed" sources used in prostate brachytherapy, containing the radionuclides 103Pd, 125I, or 131Cs, are calibrated in terms of air-kerma
The Dosimetry Group calibrates well-type ionization chambers using Xoft miniature x-ray sources, which provide low-energy x-rays (< 50 keV) for electronic
The new NIST x-ray calibration facility has been designed to improve the measurement conditions for x-ray scatter, motion control, environmental conditions
Proficiency tests have been offered by the Dosimetry Group to support air-kerma traceability since the 1980’s. The Quality Management System incorporates the
Absorbed dose is the energy imparted per unit mass by radiation to an irradiated target. The SI unit of absorbed dose is the gray (abbreviated Gy), equivalent
NIST participated in an international comparison of standards for absorbed dose to water for 60Co gamma radiation at radiation-processing dose levels organized
A bilateral comparison was conducted between NIST and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to support international efforts for harmonizing radiation
Comparisons for the national standards of air kerma from therapy level and radiation protection gamma-ray beams were conducted by the NIST and the Bureau
The primary objective of this project is to assure the technical performance and radiation safety of the nation's x-ray and gamma-ray security screening efforts
The Dosimetry Group operates a system capable of performing electron beam processing, which consists of a Van de Graaff electron accelerator and a sample
This project pursues enhanced x-ray image acquisition and analysis methods that are applicable to, for example, security and medical applications of x-ray
Due to overlap with the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USUHS) in missions, scientific interests, expertise, and instrumental requirements