Theoretical and practical implications of the effects of temperature during irradiation and during pre- and post-irradiation storage on the response of thermoluminescence dosimeters

Abstract

Experiments have been conducted to determine the applicability of the Randall-Wilkins theory for describing the behavior of CaF/sub 2/:Mn thermoluminescence dosimeters (Harshaw TLD-400 chips). Results were obtained for four different conditions: irradiation followed by storage, irradiation after storage, irradiation both preceded and followed by storage, and continuous simultaneous irradiation and storage. The experiments were performed for storage intervals of approximately 1, 2, 3, 5, 6 and 7 days at five different storage temperatures: -25, +20, +65, +150 and +175/sup 0/C. The results indicate fading that is described not by the Randall-Wilkins theory but rather as a linear function of the logarithm of the storage time. While the results suggest that the trapping efficiency is independent of temperature, they do demonstrate a small decrease in TL response with storage time prior to irradiation which is independent of temperature and time (>17 hours) and hence probably not dosimetric in origin but perhaps optically related. Glow curve analyses support the concept of a band of traps rather than a single trap. The overall results are compared to other data available in the literature most of which is for room-temperature storage. These data, for storage periods ranging from minutes to one year, can also be described as a linear function of the logarithm of the storage time and are remarkably consistent when uniformly normalized. Although peripheral experiments revealed problems associated with self-irradiation as well as a decline in sensitivity with use, the stability experiment results verify the highly favorable stability properties of CaF/sub 2/:Mn for widespread application.