Physics for Radiation Protection

A highly practical reference for health physicists and other professionals, addressing practical problems in radiation protection, this new edition has been completely revised, updated and supplemented by such new sections as log-normal distribution and digital radiography, as well as new chapters on internal radiation dose and the environmental transport of radionuclides. Designed for readers with limited as well as basic science backgrounds, the handbook presents clear, thorough and up-to-date explanations of the basic physics necessary. It provides an overview of the major discoveries in radiation physics, plus extensive discussion of radioactivity, including sources and materials, as well as calculational methods for radiation exposure, comprehensive appendices and more than 400 figures. The text draws substantially on current resource data available, which is cross-referenced to standard compendiums, providing decay schemes and emission energies for approximately 100 of the most common radionuclides encountered by practitioners. Excerpts from the Chart of the Nuclides, activation cross sections, fission yields, fission-product chains, photon attenuation coefficients, and nuclear masses are also provided. Throughout, the author emphasizes applied concepts and carefully illustrates all topics using real-world examples as well as exercises. A much-needed working resource for health physicists and other radiation protection professionals.