Thermal neutron dose measurements using TLD-100 detectors in the IPEN/MB-01 reactor core

Abstract

Considerable experimental effort has been aimed at uncovering a reliable way to perform a dosimetric assessment in mixed radiation fields. In fields composed by gammas and neutrons, TLD dosimeters are usually applied to execute such measurements, although there is no consensus on the most favorable strategy to employ them. In this context, TLD-100 measurements within two different core configurations of the IPEN/MB-01 research reactor and Monte Carlo simulations have been used to investigate the behavior of those detectors in multiple mixed radiation fields, deriving a methodology to evaluate the dose deposition in the dosimeter by different gamma and neutron energy spectra and intensities. A surprising outcome is the linear neutron dose response shown by TLD-100 even irradiated by so distinct irradiation fields.