Study of the effect of high dose rate on tissue equivalent proportional counter microdosimetric measurements in mixed photon and neutron fields

This study describes the measurement of lineal energy spectra carried out with a 5.1 cm (2 in.) diameter spherical tissue equivalent proportional counter (TEPC) simulating 2 μm tissue equivalent (TE) site diameter in low energy mixed photon-neutron fields with varying dose rates generated by employing the McMaster University 1.25 MV double stage Tandetron accelerator. The 7Li (p, n) 7Be reaction was employed to generate a variety of mixed fields of photons and low energy neutrons using proton beam energy ranging 1.89-2.56 MeV. The dose rate at a given beam energy was varied by changing the beam current. Dose rates that resulted in dead times as high as 75% were employed to study the effect of dose rate on quality, microdosimetric averages (y-bar F and y-bar D), absorbed dose and dose equivalent. We have observed that high dose rates due to both photons and neutrons in a mixed field of radiation result in pile up of pulses and distort the lineal energy spectrum measured under these conditions. The pile up effect and hence the distortion in the lineal energy spectrum becomes prominent with dose rates, which result in dead times larger than 25% for the high linear energy transfer (LET) radiation component. Intense neutron fields, which may amount to 75% dead time, could result in a 50% or even larger increase in the values of the microsdosimetric averages and the neutron quality factor. This study demonstrates moderate dose rates that do not result in dead times of more than 20-25% due to either of the component radiation or due to both components of mixed field radiation generate results that are acceptable for radiation monitoring.