A Novel Neutron-Gamma Dosimeter

Abstract

A novel DNA dosimeter, comprised of synthetic DNA strands suspended in water, is capable of accurate absorbed dose-to-tissue measurements in mixed neutron-gamma fields. When exposed to ionizing radiation, the DNA strands break releasing a fluence of visible photons. The system responds equally to all radiation types including neutron radiation. Based on theoretical analysis, the DNA dosimeter is accurate to 14% at one standard deviation when measuring an unknown spectrum of mixed neutron-gamma radiation. Linearity has been experimentally verified in gamma and x-ray fields from 100 mGy to 10 Gy and the detector’s lower limit of detection is 100 mGy.