Fundamentals of Ionizing Radiation Dosimetry

A new, comprehensively updated edition of the acclaimed textbook by F.H. Attix (Introduction to Radiological Physics and Radiation Dosimetry) taking into account the substantial developments in dosimetry since its first edition. This monograph covers charged and uncharged particle interactions at a level consistent with the advanced use of the Monte Carlo method in dosimetry; radiation quantities, macroscopic behaviour and the characterization of radiation fields and beams are covered in detail. A number of chapters include addenda presenting derivations and discussions that offer new insight into established dosimetric principles and concepts. The theoretical aspects of dosimetry are given in the comprehensive chapter on cavity theory, followed by the description of primary measurement standards, ionization chambers, chemical dosimeters and solid state detectors. Chapters on applications include reference dosimetry for standard and small fields in radiotherapy, diagnostic radiology and interventional procedures, dosimetry of unsealed and sealed radionuclide sources, and neutron beam dosimetry. The topics are presented in a logical, easy-to-follow sequence and the text is supplemented by numerous illustrative diagrams, tables and appendices. For senior undergraduate- or graduate-level students and professionals.

Table of Contents:
Preface xix Quantities and symbols xxiii Acronyms xxxix 1 Background and Essentials 1 1.1 Introduction 1 1.2 Types and Sources of Ionizing Radiation 1 1.3 Consequences of the Random Nature of Radiation 4 1.4 Interaction Cross Sections 6 1.5 Kinematic Relativistic Expressions 9 1.6 Atomic Relaxations 11 1.7 Evaluation of Uncertainties 22 Exercises 28 2 Charged-Particle Interactions with Matter 29 2.1 Introduction 29 2.2 Types of Charged-Particle Interactions 31 2.3 Elastic Scattering 36 2.4 Inelastic Scattering and Energy Loss 55 2.5 Radiative Energy Loss: Bremsstrahlung 95 2.6 Total Stopping Power 103 2.7 Range of Charged Particles 104 2.8 Number and Energy Distributions of Secondary Particles 106 2.9 Nuclear Stopping Power and Interactions by Heavy Charged Particles 112 2.10 The W-Value (Mean Energy to Create an Ion Pair) 114 2.11 Addendum –Derivation of Expressions for the Elastic and Inelastic Scattering of Heavy Charged Particles 119 Exercises 139 3 Uncharged-Particle Interactions with Matter 143 3.1 Introduction 143 3.2 Photon Interactions with Matter 143 3.3 Photoelectric Effect 145 3.4 Thomson Scattering 154 3.5 Rayleigh Scattering (Coherent Scattering) 157 3.6 Compton Scattering (Incoherent Scattering) 161 3.7 Pair Production and Triplet Production 178 3.8 Positron Annihilation 188 3.9 Photonuclear Interactions 191 3.10 Photon Interaction Coefficients 193 3.11 Neutron Interactions 204 Exercises 211 4 Field and Dosimetric Quantities, Radiation Equilibrium – Definitions and Inter-Relations 215 4.1 Introduction 215 4.2 Stochastic and Non-stochastic Quantities 215 4.3 Radiation Field Quantities and Units 216 4.4 Distributions of Field Quantities 219 4.5 Quantities Describing Radiation Interactions 220 4.6 Dosimetric Quantities 229 4.7 Relationships Between Field and Dosimetric Quantities 233 4.8 Radiation Equilibrium (RE) 239 4.9 Charged-Particle Equilibrium (CPE) 242 4.10 Partial Charged-Particle Equilibrium (PCPE) 248 4.11 Summary of the Inter-Relations between Fluence, Kerma, Cema, and Dose 252 4.12 Addendum – Example Calculations of (Net) Energy Transferred and Imparted 252 Exercises 256 5 Elementary Aspects of the Attenuation of Uncharged Particles 259 5.1 Introduction 259 5.2 Exponential Attenuation 259 5.3 Narrow-Beam Attenuation 261 5.4 Broad-Beam Attenuation 263 5.5 Spectral Effects 270 5.6 The Build-up Factor 271 5.7 Divergent Beams –The Inverse Square Law 273 5.8 The Scaling Theorem 276 Exercises 277 6 Macroscopic Aspects of the Transport of Radiation Through Matter 279 6.1 Introduction 279 6.2 The Radiation Transport Equation Formalism 280 6.3 Introduction to Monte Carlo Derived Distributions 286 6.4 Electron Beam Distributions 287 6.5 Protons and Heavier Charged Particle Beam Distributions 296 6.6 Photon Beam Distributions 301 6.7 Neutron Beam Distributions 309 6.7.1 Fluence Distributions 309 6.7.2 Dose Distributions 311 Exercises 313 7 Characterization of Radiation Quality 315 7.1 Introduction 315 7.2 General Aspects of Radiation Spectra. Mean Energy 316 7.3 Beam Quality Specification for Kilovoltage x-ray Beams 318 7.4 Megavoltage Photon Beam Quality Specification 326 7.5 High-Energy Electron Beam Quality Specification 331 7.6 Beam Quality Specification of Protons and Heavier Charged Particles 335 7.7 Energy Spectra Determination 339 Exercises 346 8 The Monte Carlo Simulation of the Transport of Radiation Through Matter 349 8.1 Introduction 349 8.2 Basics of the Monte Carlo Method (MCM) 350 8.3 Simulation of Radiation Transport 359 8.4 Monte Carlo Codes and Systems in the Public Domain 379 8.5 Monte Carlo Applications in Radiation Dosimetry 386 8.6 Other Monte Carlo Developments 393 Exercises 394 9 Cavity Theory 397 9.1 Introduction 397 9.2 Cavities That Are Small Compared to Secondary Electron Ranges 399 9.3 Stopping-Power Ratios 413 9.4 Cavities That Are Large Compared to Electron Ranges 423 9.5 General or Burlin Cavity Theory 425 9.6 The Fano Theorem 429 9.7 Practical Detectors: Deviations from ‘Ideal’ Cavity Theory Conditions 431 9.8 Summary and Validation of Cavity Theory 435 Exercises 440 10 Overview of Radiation Detectors and Measurements 443 10.1 Introduction 443 10.2 Detector Response and Calibration Coefficient 444 10.3 Absolute, Reference, and Relative Dosimetry 445 10.4 General Characteristics and Desirable Properties of Detectors 447 10.5 Brief Description of Various Types of Detectors 460 10.6 Addendum –The Role of the Density Effect and I-Values in the Medium-to-Water Stopping-Power Ratio 467 Exercises 471 11 Primary Radiation Standards 473 11.1 Introduction 473 11.2 Free-Air Ionization Chambers 474 11.3 Primary Cavity Ionization Chambers 481 11.4 Absorbed-Dose Calorimeters 484 11.5 Fricke Chemical Dosimeter 488 11.6 International Framework for Traceability in Radiation Dosimetry 490 11.7 Addendum – Experimental Derivation of Fundamental Dosimetric Quantities 491 Exercises 493 12 Ionization Chambers 497 12.1 Introduction 497 12.2 Types of Ionization Chamber 498 12.3 Measurement of Ionization Current 504 12.4 Ion Recombination 513 12.5 Addendum –Air Humidity in Dosimetry 524 Exercises 531 13 Chemical Dosimeters 533 13.1 Introduction 533 13.2 Radiation Chemistry in Water 533 13.3 Chemical Heat Defect 538 13.4 Ferrous Sulfate Dosimeters 539 13.5 Alanine Dosimetry 547 13.6 Film Dosimetry 556 13.7 Gel Dosimetry 568 Exercises 574 14 Solid-State Detector Dosimetry 577 14.1 Introduction 577 14.2 Thermoluminescence Dosimetry 577 14.3 Optically-Stimulated Luminescence Dosimeters 591 14.4 Scintillation Dosimetry 596 14.5 Semiconductor Detectors for Dosimetry 609 Exercises 628 15 Reference Dosimetry for External Beam Radiation Therapy 631 15.1 Introduction 631 15.2 A Generalized Formalism 632 15.3 Practical Implementation of Formalisms 636 15.4 Quantities Entering into the Various Formalisms 651 15.5 Accuracy of Radiation Therapy Reference Dosimetry 669 15.6 Addendum – Perturbation Correction Factors 671 Exercises 689 16 Dosimetry of Small and Composite Radiotherapy Photon Beams 693 16.1 Introduction 693 16.2 Overview 694 16.3 The Physics of Small Megavoltage Photon Beams 696 16.4 Dosimetry of Small Beams 701 16.5 Detectors for Small-Beam Dosimetry 714 16.6 Dosimetry of Composite Fields 717 16.7 Addendum—Measurement in Plastic Phantoms 723 Exercises 726 17 Reference Dosimetry for Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology 729 17.1 Introduction 729 17.2 Specific Quantities and Units 730 17.3 Formalism for Reference Dosimetry 736 17.4 Quantities Entering into the Formalism 740 Exercises 751 18 Absorbed Dose Determination for Radionuclides 753 18.1 Introduction 753 18.2 Radioactivity Quantities and Units 755 18.3 Dosimetry of Unsealed Radioactive Sources 763 18.4 Dosimetry of Sealed Radioactive Sources 788 18.5 Addendum –The Reciprocity Theorem for Unsealed Radionuclide Dosimetry 804 Exercises 809 19 Neutron Dosimetry 813 19.1 Introduction 813 19.2 Neutron Interactions in Tissue and Tissue-Equivalent Materials 814 19.3 Neutron Sources 818 19.4 Principles of Mixed-Field Dosimetry 821 19.5 Neutron Detectors 825 19.6 Reference Dosimetry of Neutron Radiotherapy Beams 833 Exercises 838 A Data Tables 841 A.1 Fundamental and Derived Physical Constants 841 A.2 Data of Elements 843 A.3 Data for Compounds and Mixtures 846 A.4 Atomic Binding Energies for Elements 846 A.5 Atomic Fluorescent X-ray Mean Energies and Yields for Elements 857 A.6 Interaction Data for Electrons and Positrons (Electronic Form) 863 A.7 Interaction Data for Protons and Heavier Charged Particles (Electronic Form) 868 A.8 Interaction Data for Photons (Electronic Form) 874 A.9 Neutron Kerma Coefficients (Electronic Form) 879 References 881 Index 945

About the Author :
The four authors continuing the pioneering work of Frank Attix, Prof Pedro Andreo (Karolinska, Stockholm), Dr David T. Burns (BIPM, Paris), Prof Alan E. Nahum (University of Liverpool) and Prof Jan Seuntjens (McGill University, Montreal), are leading scientists in radiation dosimetry, having published between them more than 600 papers in the field. They have co-authored most of the existing national and international recommendations for radiotherapy dosimetry and received a number of international awards for their contributions.

Review :
"[...] this book is a significant update to previous publications on this topic and a major contribution to the field of radiation dosimetry. [...] It is extremely comprehensive in its coverage of every topic from theoretical background to clinical practice. This book will serve every member of the medical physics community well." Prof. Peter J. Biggs in Physica Medica (2018)