Thermoluminescence of X irradiated chlorapatite containing silver

Thermoluminescence (TL) of sintered calcium chlorapatites doped with 0.03 wt% silver and appreciable amounts of sodium ions have been investigated, because the effective atomic number of calcium chlorapatite is close to that of human bones and teeth. The presence of silver ions increases the sensitivity of the TL peaks to radiation dose, but the peak temperatures are not affected by the activators. For the sake of comparison, CuCl2 and NdCl3 doped samples were made and their TL glow curves were measured. They showed the same peak temperatures at 65 and 1700C as the silver doped sample, but the intensities were different. These results may indicate that the charge carriers should be holes which are trapped by matrices of the samples. Electrons are trapped by the metal activators, some of which are detected by ESR. The linear response of the TL peak at 1700C relative to exposure was observed up to about 2.58 C.kg-1. About 85% of the original intensity after an irradiation of 2.58 x 10-2C.kg-1 was preserved for 30 days at room temperature in the dark. This material could therefore be used for a TL dosemeter. (author)