Abstract
The kinetic energy of radiation released during radioactive decay is measured in electron volts (eV). An electron volt is the kinetic energy gained by an electron when accelerated by a 1 volt potential difference. A volt of electrons is a tiny unit. The energy of various radiations released during radioactive decay (including X-rays) will be substantially greater; hence they are measured in kilo (103) electron volts (keV) or million (106) electron volts (MeV). In contrast, visible light has an energy of 1 to 4 eV.
The radiation released by a radioisotope is invisible to the naked eye and cannot be felt by the human body. They interact with the atoms when they strike matter to cause excitations and ionizations. Excitation is raising an atom’s orbital electron to a higher energy state, while ionization is the process of removing one or more electrons from an atom, resulting in the formation of an ion pair, a positive and a negative ion. Both of these processes result in energy being transferred from radiation to matter. Ionizing radiations are so named because they have the capacity to ionize materials.
The biological, chemical and physical impacts of radiation are ultimately due to ionization. This feature of radiation is utilized to detect and measure ionizing radiations. The interaction of ionizing radiation with matter is covered in Sect. 1 of this chapter.
Electromagnetic and particulate ionizing radiations are the two types of ionizing radiation where charged and uncharged particles may be found in particle radiation. In addition, Sect. 2 of this chapter briefly discusses the different methods for producing radionuclides utilized in nuclear medicine.
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Tandon, P., Prakash, D., Kheruka, S.C., Bhat, N.N. (2022). Interaction of Ionizing Radiation with Matter. In: Radiation Safety Guide for Nuclear Medicine Professionals. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4518-2_3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4518-2_3
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