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Interaction of Radiation with Matter
J.Jeyasugiththan PhD
Department of Nuclear Science
University of Colombo
Learning outcomes
At the end of this class you will be able to
ü describe interaction of electron and positron with matter.
ü define specific ionization (SI), electron range (R) and
liner energy transfer (LET).
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Interactions of electrons with matter
Coulombic interactions
(Collision with atomic electrons)
- Ionization
- Excitation
Radiative interactions
- Bremsstrahlung
- Positron Annihilation
Excitation
Excitation is the transfer of
some of the incident electron’s
energy to orbital electrons.
Promoting them to electron
orbits further from the nucleus
(to higher energy level).
The electron will return to a
lower energy level, with the
Energy is given off by one of emission of excitation
the outer electrons leaving. energy in the form of
This electron is known as electromagnetic radiation
Auger electron. (characteristic X-rays) or
Auger electron.
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Ionization
Ionisation ejects an electron
from the atom, turning it into a
positive ion.
The result of ionization is an
ion-pair.
Sometime the ejected electrons
have sufficient energy to
produce further ionization
called secondary ionization.
Ionization
The Result of Ionization
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Ionization
E=hf
c=fl
l=hc/E
The electron knock out an inner-shell electron from target atoms.
When these inner-shell vacancies are refilled by free electrons, X-
ray photons (know as characteristic X-ray) are emitted with
different wavelengths.
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Bremsstrahlung radiation
The probability of the
bremsstrahlung emission
per atom is proportional
to Z2.
Occasionally electrons
directly hit the nucleus of a
target atom in which all the
kinetic energy of the electron
is transformed into a single x-
ray photon.
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Bremsstrahlung radiation
Bremsstrahlung means
“breaking radiation”
Sudden stopping or slowing
of high-speed electrons by
the atomic nuclei (or
target) produce
Bremsstrahlung radiation
(x-rays).
The path of the electron is
deflected by the positively
charged nucleus with loss
of kinetic energy.
Interactions of positron (e+/b+) with matter
Occurs when the positron collide
with an electron in the medium at
the end of the track.
The results of the collision is the
creation of two gamma ray
photons, each with an energy of
0.511 MeV (rest mass of electron
or positron, E=mc2).
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Interactions of positron (e+/b+) with matter
Interaction mechanism is the same as that of electrons.
But now the coulomb force between the two interacting
particles are attractive.
Same energy β- and β+ have similar ranges in a given
medium.
However there is a significant difference taking place at
the end of the positron track .
At the end of the track the positron combines with an
electron in the medium and annihilates.
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Specific Ionization
Positively charged atom and free negatively charged electron
(called an ion pair) are created.
The amount of energy is required to create an ion pair, W, is
characteristic of the materials in the absorber.
Approximately 33 eV (the range is 25–40 eV) is required to
create each ion pair in air or water.
The number of ion pairs created per unit distance the radiation
travels as its specific ionization (SI).
Heavier particles with more charge (alpha particles) have a
higher specific ionization than lighter particles with less charge
(electrons).
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Specific Ionization
Average Energy Lost by a Beta Particle in the Production of an Ion Pair
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Range of electron
Electron ionize the matter and thus
continuously lose energy in many
steps until its energy is zero.
The distance to this point from the
surface is called the range of the
particle (or electron)
Range
(R)
The range depends on the type of
particle, on its initial energy and on
the material through which it passes.
The range of 100 keV and 1.0 MeV
electrons in human tissue is 1.33x10-2
g/cm2 and 0.412 g/cm2, respectively.
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Range of electron
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Linear Energy Transfer (LET)
The linear energy transfer (LET) is the amount of energy
transferred in a given distance by a particle moving through
an absorber.
LET = SI x W
Alpha particles are classified as high-LET radiation, and
beta particles and photons as low-LET radiation.
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Linear Energy Transfer (LET)
The LET resulting from the passage of a 0.1-MeV beta particle through
standard air is 4750 eV/cm. Calculate the number of ion pairs formed
per unit distance travelled by the beta particle.
The number of ion pairs formed per unit distance
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X-ray Spectrums
E=hf
c=fl
l=hc/E
Continuous spectrum (1,2 and 3)
Line or discrete spectrum (4)
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Bremsstrahlung Spectrum
Bremsstrahlung radiation is a continues spectrum corresponding
to electrons is loosing different fraction of their initial kinetic
energy.
Short wavelength X-rays are
produced by electrons
loosing large kinetic energy
Loosing a small amount
of energy produced long
wave length X-rays
E = h c /l Electron looses all its
lmin = h c / Emax kinetic energy (cut off )
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Characteristic X-rays
Characteristic x-rays are supreme post of the continuous
bremsstrahlung spectrum observed by the experiment.
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Questions
Iodine-131 has a half-life of 8.1 days and is used as a tracer for the
thyroid gland. If a patient drinks a sodium iodide (NaI) solution
containing iodine-131, how many days will it take for the concentration
of iodine-131 to drop to 5.0% of its initial concentration?
0.693
T1 = A = Ao e - lt
2 l
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Questions
Calculate the energy carried by one x-ray photon produced at a
wavelength of 10 pm when an electron collided with an atom. Planck’s
constant is 6.63 x 10-34 Js
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Questions
Calculate the energy release corresponding to one electron mass (9.109 x
10-31 kg)
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Questions
Calculate the energy equivalent of 1 atomic mass unit (amu). Avogadro’s
number, 6.022045 x 1023
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