Absorbed dose in ion beams: comparison of ionisation- and fluence-based measurements.

A direct comparison measurement of fluorescent nuclear track detectors (FNTDs) and a thimble ionisation chamber is presented. Irradiations were performed using monoenergetic protons (142.66 MeV, ϕ=3×10(6) cm(-2)) and carbon ions (270.55 MeV u(-1), ϕ=3 × 10(6) cm(-2)). It was found that absorbed dose to water values as determined by fluence measurements using FNTDs are, in case of protons, in good agreement (2.4 %) with ionisation chamber measurements, if slower protons and Helium secondaries were accounted for by an effective stopping power. For carbon, however, a significant discrepancy of 4.5 % was seen, which could not be explained by fragmentation, uncertainties or experimental design. The results rather suggest a W-value of 32.10 eV ± 2.6 %. Additionally, the abundance of secondary protons expected from Monte-Carlo transport simulation was not observed.

Characterisation of neutron fields at Cernavoda NPP.

Near a nuclear reactor or a fuel container, mixed neutron/gamma fields are very common, necessitating routine neutron dosimetry. Accurate neutron dosimetry is complicated by the fact that the neutron effective dose is strongly dependent on the neutron energy and the direction distribution of the neutron fluence. Neutron field characterisation is indispensable if one wants to obtain a reliable estimate for the neutron dose. A measurement campaign at CANDU nuclear power plant located in Cernavoda, Romania, was set up to characterise the neutron fields in four different locations and to investigate the behaviour of different neutron personal dosemeters. This investigation intends to assist in choosing a suitable neutron dosimetry system at this nuclear power plant.