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An Efficient, Affordable Optically Stimulated Luminescent (OSL) Annealer
Sara A Abraham1, Samuel J Frank, Kimberlee J Kearfott
1*University of Michigan, Department of Nuclear Engineering and Radiological Sciences, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-2104.
Health Physics
|May 26, 2017
Summary
Optically stimulated luminescent (OSL) dosimeters can be reused by optically annealing the Al2O3:C material. Blue LEDs are most effective for rapidly clearing the OSL signal, reducing measurement uncertainty.
Area of Science:
- Medical Physics
- Radiation Detection and Measurement
Background:
- Optically stimulated luminescent (OSL) dosimeters measure ionizing radiation doses.
- Reusable OSL dosimeters require annealing to remove residual signals, but traditional heating methods are incompatible with some materials like Al2O3:C.
Purpose of the Study:
- To design and evaluate an affordable optical annealing system for OSL dosimeters.
- To determine the effectiveness of different LED colors for annealing Al2O3:C OSL dosimeters.
Main Methods:
- An OSL dosimeter annealer was constructed using exchangeable blue, green, and white LEDs.
- Multiple Al2O3:C dosimeters were repeatedly annealed with LEDs and read out.
- Signal loss was analyzed to assess annealing efficiency based on light spectrum and initial signal levels.
Main Results:
- Optical annealing is a viable alternative to thermal annealing for Al2O3:C OSL dosimeters.
- The efficiency of signal clearing depended on the LED color and the initial radiation dose.
- Blue LEDs demonstrated the most promising results for rapid and effective signal reduction.
Conclusions:
- An affordable optical annealing system using LEDs can effectively anneal OSL dosimeters.
- Blue LEDs are recommended for efficient optical annealing of Al2O3:C OSL dosimeters, improving reusability and measurement accuracy.
