title: Counting 241Am in the BfS human skull phantom on contact-evaluation in the human monitoring laboratory.
abstract: Skull counting can be used to assess the activity of radionuclides internally deposited in the bone. The Human Monitoring Laboratory (HML) at Health Canada conducted the measurement of 241Am in the BfS (Bundesamt für Strahlenschuts) skull phantom on contact with the skull for various positions. By placing the detector in contact, the HML can improve the counting efficiency by over 20% compared to placing the detector 1 cm above the surface of the skull. Among all the positions tested, the forehead position is the preferred counting geometry due to the design of HML's counting facility and the comfort it would provide to the individual being counted, although this counting position did not offer the highest counting efficiency for the gamma rays (either the 59.5 keV or the 26.3 keV) emitted by 241Am.
authors: *Radiation Protection Bureau, Health Canada, 775 Brookfield Rd, Ottawa, Canada K1A 1C1; †Helmholtz Zentrum München, Institute of Radiation Protection, Ingolstädter Landstraße 1, 85764 Neuherberg, Germany; ‡Centro de Investigaciones Energéticas, Medioambientales y Tecnológicas, Avda. Complutense 40, Madrid 28040, Spain.
authors: Chunsheng
authors: C
authors: Li
authors: Barry
authors: B
authors: Hauck
authors: Kevin
authors: K
authors: Capello
authors: Pedro
authors: P
authors: Nogueira
authors: Maria A
authors: MA
authors: Lopez
authors: Gary H
authors: GH
authors: Kramer
mesh_terms: D000576:Americium / Q000032:analysis*; D006801:Humans; D007753:Laboratories; D019047:Phantoms, Imaging; D011834:Radiation Monitoring / Q000295:instrumentation*; D012886:Skull
chemical_list: D000576:Americium