Ionizing Radiation linear energy transfer

Quality Factor (Q)—The linear-energy-transfer-dependent factor by which absorbed doses are multiplied to obtain (for radiation protection purposes) a quantity that expresses - on a common scale for all ionizing radiation - the approximate biological effectiveness of the absorbed dose. 

Linear energy transfer (LET) A function of the capacity of the radiation to produce ionization. LET is the rate at which charged particles transfer their energies to the atoms in a medium and a function of the energy and velocity of the charged particle. See Radiation dose. 

The stopping power of a material for a particular radiation is commonly expressed as the rate of energy loss (R.E.L.) or the linear energy transfer (L.E.T.) of the radiation in the material. These quantities are assumed to be proportional to the linear ion density and the specific ionization. Stopping powers range from approximately 106 e.v./cm. for fast electrons (1 Mev.) in water to 1011 e.v./cm. for fission recoils. The ranges of particles are frequently expressed in mg./cm.2, which when multiplied by the density of the material yields the range. 

Then, a major part of these radicals would be consumed by chain termination to form corresponding alcohols and ketones. Yokohata and Tsuda (23, 24, 25) have suggested that the silent discharge reaction can well be interpreted in terms of radiolysis caused by the ionizing radiation of high LET (Linear Energy Transfer), and this would help explain the short chains of this oxidation. 

One of the characteristics of radiation considered in radiation chemistry and in radiobiology is the linear energy transfer (LET). For fast charged particles the LET practically equals the ionization losses (or polarization losses, in condensed media) and is given by the formulas for the stopping power presented in Section V.A. 

The term —dZt/dx is called the linear energy transfer (LET) of the radiation. If electrons (p-rays) are the ionizing particles, the expression for LET is slightly different ... 

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