Graphite sheets in study of radiation dosimetry and associated investigations of damage

Present work builds upon prior investigations concerning the novel use of graphite-rich polymer pencil-lead for passive radiation dosimetry. Working with photon-mediated interactions at levels of dose familiar in radiotherapy, exploratory investigations have now been made using graphite produced commercially in the form of 50 mu m thick sheets. Focusing on the relationship between absorbed radiation energy and induced material changes, investigations have been made of thermo- and photoluminescence dose dependence, also of alterations in Raman spectroscopic features. Photoluminescence studies have focused on the degree of structural order of the samples when exposed to incident MeV energy gamma-radiation, supported by crystallite size evaluations. The results are consistent and evident of structural alterations, radiation-driven thermal annealing also being observed. The results, supportive of previous TL, Raman and photoluminescence studies, are readily understood to arise from irradiation changes occurring at the microscopic level. Notwithstanding the non-linearities observed in the conduct of Raman and photoluminescence studies there is clear potential for applications in use of the defect-dependent methods herein, providing sensitive detection of radiation damage in graphite and from it dose determination. Most specifically, the readily available thin graphite sheets can provide the basis of a low-cost yet highly effective system for studies of radiation-driven changes in carbon (and/or carbon based composites), also as a dosimetric probe of skin dose, its atomic number closely matching with the effective atomic number of soft tissues.