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Particle Track Structure and Biological Implications

Encyclopedia of Bioastronautics

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Definitions

The track structure of an ionizing charged particle is the stochastic spatial pattern of the inelastic interactions of the particle and all associated secondary charged particles as they pass through matter and impart energy to the molecules or atoms with which they interact. It is this track structure pattern of interactions that sets the initial conditions from which follow the subsequent physico-chemical, chemical, biochemical, and biological consequences of the radiation. Differences in track structure between different types and energies of ionizing radiation can lead to differences in biological consequences, quantitatively and qualitatively.

Introduction

Track structure is the key property that gives ionizing radiation its considerable potency in causing biological effects and determines the relative effectiveness of different types of radiation for a wide variety of effects. The tracks are the stochastic patterns of the interactions of the charged particles as they...

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Medical Research Council, Harwell, Didcot, UK

    Dudley T. Goodhead

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  1. Dudley T. Goodhead
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Correspondence to Dudley T. Goodhead .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Room 37-219, Massachusetts Institute of Technolo Room 37-219, CAMBRIDGE, MA, USA

    Laurence R. Young

  2. Center for Space Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine Center for Space Medicine, HOUSTON, TX, USA

    Jeffrey P. Sutton

Section Editor information

  1. Radiation Oncology, Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA

    Kathryn D. Held Ph.D.

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Goodhead, D.T. (2019). Particle Track Structure and Biological Implications. In: Young, L., Sutton, J. (eds) Encyclopedia of Bioastronautics. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-10152-1_29-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-10152-1_29-1

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  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-10152-1

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Chapter history

  1. Latest

    Particle Track Structure and Biological Implications
    Published:
    03 December 2020

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-10152-1_29-2

  2. Original

    Particle Track Structure and Biological Implications
    Published:
    05 December 2018

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-10152-1_29-1

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