Gamma radiation has a higher frequency and shorter wavelength than x-rays, which allows this type of radiation to more easily penetrate surfaces. Because of this property, gamma radiation can pose a health risk to living matter, destroying living tissues. Gamma radiation has a number of purposes in the medical, manufacturing, and food preparation industries.
Medical
Gamma radiation may be used in radiation therapy (chemotherapy) in order to treat cancers. Because gamma rays are highly destructive, gamma rays are used with caution. With gamma knife surgery, cancerous regions of the body are targeted with small radiation bursts to kill cancerous cells. Positron emission tomography is a medical imaging technique which uses a computer system to direct small bursts of gamma radiation across a particular part of the body. A patient will drink a radioactive tracer which accumulates in the part of the body being examined. An imaging computer will create a picture based upon how long it takes gamma radiation to penetrate tissue. This technology allows doctors to identify brain tumors, cancers, and gland malfunctions.
Airports
Gamma radiography is used frequently at airports in order to screen luggage. This type of radiation offers a clear picture of what is in luggage, so that airport security screeners can identify flight hazards such as bombs or weapons. Airport security checkpoints may use gamma radiation or x-rays in order to form a picture of a passenger. This allows security personal to check passengers for weapons before they get on the plane. Gamma radiation devices are usually smaller than x-ray machines, but the high frequency wavelengths of this type of radiation can cause negative health effects in even small doses.
Sterilization
Food and wool may be sterilized using gamma radiation. This type of radioactivity will kill any harmful microbes and parasites that may infect humans. As of 2010, 40 countries have approved the irradiation of many foods. Medical supply manufacturers will use gamma sterilization in order to ensure that syringes and gloves do not become contaminated by pathogens. This method works better than heat sterilization, which can destroy the integrity of plastics.
Detection
Traditional gauges, which are used to measure the volume of a material in a pipe or to determine the amount of a material in a container, are less accurate than gamma radiation technology. A coal mining plant may use a gamma radiation detector to create a beam when coal is being fed into an automated hopper which sorts the coal. When this beam is broken because the hopper is over-filled, a gauge can stop the machinery or warn the operator. Gamma radiation gauges may be used to measure the thickness of paper produced at a paper mill in order to ensure little variation in paper width.
Tags: type radiation, Gamma radiation, gamma radiation, gamma radiation, gamma radiation
