Alpha radiation testing of materials: a technique with excellent dosimetry and no radioactive contamination

Abstract

This abstract describes a technique by which to carry out the alpha radiation testing of materials samples without the use of radioactive materials. This technique avoids the chance of creating radioactively contaminated test samples, which is a drawback of the most common processes for assessing alpha radiation effects. A beam of alpha particles produced by an accelerator is brought to bear upon the test samples, exposing them to alpha radiation in a controlled and measureable manner. This has a secondary benefit of significantly improving the accuracy of dosimetry compared with other techniques.