Real-time reading of radiochromic films

It is a device, made of fibre optic cables, that allows radiochromic films, when exposed to ionizing radiation, to be read in real time and from a remote location.

How does it work?

When exposed to ionizing radiation, a radiochromic film changes its colour, in particular it becomes darker.

During exposure, the film can be illuminated by means of optical fibres and, in real time, some reading optical fibres measure the return light signal, which has become weaker due to the darkening of the film. From this measurement, it is possible to quantify the dose of ionizing radiation absorbed.

The device lends itself well to reading different types of radiochromic films, allowing to monitor dose levels from a few cGy to hundreds of kGy.

In addition, it is possible to exploit smaller portions of film and use the same for different irradiations and thus considerably reduce material procurement costs.

Applications

• Monitoring of environmental radiation, special materials in landfills and in experimental areas normally inaccessible during measurement, such as accelerators and irradiation sites
• Patient dose monitoring in the medical field
• Use in the field of particle beam diagnostics
• Monitoring of the dose absorbed by food in sterilization treatments

Advantages

• Real-time dosimetric evaluation
• Control from a remote location
• Exposure and multiple readings for the same film
• <Use of reduced portions of film mm2
• Wide measurable dose range