Dosimetry Research
The Dosimetry Group of the Paul Scherrer Institute carries out research on topics of interest for radiation dosimetry in general. Current research interests include:
• Luminescence processes in insulators: fundamental of luminescence properties in storage phosphors, scintillators, persistent phosphors; recombination process; stimulated luminescence phenomena.
• Radiation dosimetry: solid-state luminescence dosimetry; radiation effects in insulators; thermoluminescence (TL) and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL); modeling of TL and OSL processes in dosimetric materials; neutron dosimetry using plastic nuclear track detectors and fluorescence nuclear track detectors (FNTDs).
• Medical dosimetry: development of methodology for dose verification in radiotherapy, particularly small field dosimetry and 2D dose mapping, of high energy photons, protons and heavy-charged particles; new technologies for dose verification in Computed Tomography; Monte-Carlo simulations of dose deposition in detectors; out-of-field measurements in radiation therapy.
• Space dosimetry: characterization of TL and OSL dosimeters for use in the space radiation field; development of methodologies for analysis of TL/OSL data in complex radiation fields; modeling of the microdosimetric distribution created by heavy-charged-particles in TL/OSL materials.
• Retrospective and accident dosimetry: investigation of materials and methods to provide retrospective information in case of accidents involving radiation; application of the OSL technique for triage in case of radiological/nuclear accidents.
Collaborators
• Dosilab AG, Köniz, Switzerland
• German Aerospace Center (DLR), Köln, Germany
• German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
• Institute of Earth Surface Dynamics, University of Lausanne, Geopolis, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
• Institute of Geological Sciences, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
• Landauer Crystal Growth Facility, Landauer Inc., Stillwater, Oklahoma, United States
• Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, Oklahoma, United States
• Physics Department, Federal University of Sergipe, São Cristovão, Sergipe, Brazil
• Proton Therapy Center, Paul Scherrer Institute, Villigen, Switzerland
Current and past students
• Alberto Stabilini. "Methodological improvements in neutron dosimetry using PADC detectors"(co-advisor). M. S. Thesis, Nuclear Engineering, Politecnico di Milano (2017)
Funded projects
• Swiss Federal Nuclear Safety Inspectorate (ENSI Contract no. H-101196)
• "Automated Research Instrument for Thermoluminescence/Optically Stimulated Luminescence/Radioluminescence Measurements", Swiss National Science Foundation, 1 Nov 2018 -31 Oct 2019;