Engineering Papers⌕ Search

SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “IR”

Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 271 records · Page 15
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2015

Electronic structure and thermoelectric properties of pnictogen-substituted ASn{sub 1.5}Te{sub 1.5} (A = Co, Rh, Ir) skutterudites

Substituting group 14 and 16 elements on the pnictogen site in the skutterudite structure yields a class of valence-precise ternary AX{sub 1.5}Y{sub 1.5} compounds (A = Co, Rh, Ir, X = Sn, Ge, and Y = S, Se, Te), in which X and Y form an ordered sub-structure. Compared with unfilled binary skutterudites, pnictogen-substituted phases exhibit extremely low lattice thermal conductivity due to increased structural complexity. Here, we investigate the role of the transition metal species in determining the electronic structure and transport properties of ASn{sub 1.5}Te{sub 1.5} compounds with A = Co, Rh, Ir. Density functional calculations using fully ordered structures reveal semiconducting behavior in all three compounds, with the band gap varying from 0.2 to 0.45 eV. In CoSn{sub 1.5}Te{sub 1.5}, the electronic density of states near the gap is significantly higher than for A = Ir or Rh, leading to higher effective masses and higher Seebeck coefficients. Experimentally, Ir and Rh samples exhibit relatively large p-type carrier concentrations and degenerate semiconducting behavior. In contrast, CoSn{sub 1.5}Te{sub 1.5} shows mixed conduction, with n-type carriers dominating the Seebeck coefficient and light, high mobility holes dominating the Hall coefficient. zT values of up to 0.35 were obtained, and further improvement is expected upon optimization of the carrier concentration or with n-type doping.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2013

Excitation and dissociation of molecules by femtosecond IR laser radiation in the gas phase and on dielectric surfaces

This paper presents an overview of early studies and new experimental data on the effect of near-IR (0.8-1.8 {mu}m) and mid-IR (3.3-5.8 {mu}m) intense femtosecond (130-350 fs) laser pulses on polyatomic molecules in the gas phase and on the surface of substrates. We examine the vibrational dynamics of nine molecules containing a C=O chromophore group, which are initiated by resonance femtosecond IR laser radiation at a wavelength of {approx}5 {mu}m, and report measured characteristic times of intramolecular vibrational redistribution. The characteristic time of molecules containing a single C=O group lies in the range 2.4-20 ps and that of the Fe(CO){sub 5} and Cr(CO){sub 6} molecules lies in the nanosecond range ({approx}1.0 and {approx}1.5 ns, respectively). Carbon structures have been observed for the first time to result from the decomposition of (CF{sub 3}){sub 2}CCO molecules on the surface of metal fluorides under the effect of femtosecond IR laser radiation in the wavelength range 3.3-5.4 {mu}m with no gas-phase decomposition of the molecules. (extreme light fields and their applications)

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2020

Strong mutual increase in the efficiency of isotope-selective laser IR dissociation of molecules under nonequilibrium thermodynamic conditions of the compression shock under irradiation in a bimolecular mixture

We have revealed a strong (by a factor of 2 to 5) mutual increase in the yield of IR molecular dissociation (by the example of CF{sub 2}HCl and CF{sub 3}Br) and a significant (by a factor of 1.5 to 3) lowering of dissociation thresholds in the nonequilibrium thermodynamic conditions of compression shock in the irradiation of the molecules by resonance IR laser radiation in the bimolecular mixture in comparison with their individual irradiation. This opens up the possibility to perform efficient isotope-selective IR dissociation of molecules at lower excitation energy densities (Φ ⩽ 1.5 – 2.0 J cm{sup −2}) and thereby to improve the dissociation selectivity. This was demonstrated by the example of chlorine- and bromine-isotope selective dissociation of the specified molecules, which are characterised by quite small (less than 0.25 cm{sup −1}) isotope shifts in the IR vibrational absorption spectra excited by laser radiation. The enrichment coefficients K {sub enr}({sup 35}Cl / {sup 37}Cl) = 0.90 ± 0.05 in the residual CF{sub 2}HCl gas and K {sub enr}({sup 79}Br / {sup 81}Br) in the resultant Br{sub 2} product are obtained when the CF{sub 2}HCl : CF{sub 3}Br = 1 : 1 molecular mixture and CF{sub 3}Br molecules, respectively, are irradiated by the 9R(30) CO{sub 2} laser line (frequency, 1084.635 cm{sup −1}) at an energy density Φ ≈ 1.3 J cm{sup −2}. (laser isotope separation)

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2015

PERIODIC ACCRETION INSTABILITIES IN THE PROTOSTAR L1634 IRS 7

The small molecular cloud Lynds 1634 contains at least three outflow sources. We found one of these, IRS 7, to be variable with a period of 37.14 ± 0.04 days and an amplitude of approximately 2 mag in the K{sub s} band. The light curve consists of a quiescent phase with little or no variation, and a rapid outburst phase. During the outburst phase, the rapid variation in brightness generates light echoes that propagate into the surrounding molecular cloud, allowing a measurement of the distance to IRS 7 of 404 pc ± 35 pc. We observed only a marginally significant change in the H − K color during the outburst phase. The K-band spectrum of IRS 7 shows CO bandhead emission but its equivalent width does not change significantly with the phase of the light curve. The H{sub 2} 1–0 S(1) line emission does not follow the variability of the continuum flux. We also used the imaging data for a proper motion study of the outflows originating from the IRS 7 and the far-infrared source IRAS 05173-0555, and confirm that these are indeed distinct outflows.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2015

Bayesian high-redshift quasar classification from optical and MID-IR photometry

We identify 885,503 type 1 quasar candidates to i≲22 using the combination of optical and mid-IR photometry. Optical photometry is taken from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey-III: Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey (SDSS-III/BOSS), while mid-IR photometry comes from a combination of data from the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) “AllWISE” data release and several large-area Spitzer Space Telescope fields. Selection is based on a Bayesian kernel density algorithm with a training sample of 157,701 spectroscopically confirmed type 1 quasars with both optical and mid-IR data. Of the quasar candidates, 733,713 lack spectroscopic confirmation (and 305,623 are objects that we have not previously classified as photometric quasar candidates). These candidates include 7874 objects targeted as high-probability potential quasars with 3.5 3.5 than the traditional mid-IR selection “wedges” and to 2.2 3. This catalog paves the way for luminosity-dependent clustering investigations of large numbers of faint, high-redshift quasars and for further machine-learning quasar selection using Spitzer and WISE data combined with other large-area optical imaging surveys.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2021

Mn-induced spin glass behavior in metallic Ir 3 Sn 7-x Mn x

Transition metal stannides are usually semiconductors with a narrow band gap. We report experimental investigation on metallic Ir 3 Sn 7– x Mn x ( x = 0 and 0.56). Single crystal x-ray diffraction refinement indicates that Ir 3 Sn 7– x Mn x crystals form a cubic structure (space group Im 3 - m ) with the lattice parameter a = 9.362(4) Å for x = 0 and 9.328(6) Å for x = 0.56. The electrical resistivity shows metallic behavior between 2 K and 300 K with T 2 dependence at T < 30 K for x = 0, reflecting the Fermi-liquid ground state. While Ir 3 Sn 7 exhibits weak diamagnetism, partial substitution of Sn by Mn results in spin glass behavior in Ir 3 Sn 7- x Mn x below T g ~ 13 K for x = 0.56. Remarkably, an upturn in the resistivity is observed in x = 0.56 below ~2 T g , suggesting strong spin fluctuation. This fluctuation is suppressed by the application of magnetic field, which is reflected in the observation of negative magnetoresistance. The unusual properties that emerge due to Mn doping are discussed.

Physics↗
DOE OSTI2024

Robust superconductivity and the suppression of charge-density wave in the quasi-skutterudites Ca 3 ( Ir 1 – x Rh x ) 4 Sn 13 single crystals at ambient pressure

Single crystals of the quasi-skutterudite compounds Ca 3 (Ir 1-x Rh x ) 4 Sn 13 (3–4–13) were synthesized by flux growth and characterized by x-ray diffraction, energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy, magnetization, resistivity, and radio frequency magnetic susceptibility techniques. The coexistence and competition between the charge density wave (CDW) and superconductivity was studied by varying the Rh/Ir ratio. The superconducting transition temperature, T c , varies from 7 K in pure Ir (x = 0) to 8.3 K in pure Rh (x = 1). Temperature-dependent electrical resistivity reveals monotonic suppression of the CDW transition temperature, T CDW (x). The CDW starts in pure Ir, x = 0, at T CDW ≈ 40 K and extrapolates roughly linearly to zero at x c ≈ 0.53–0.58 under the superconducting dome. Magnetization and transport measurements show a significant influence of CDW on superconducting and normal states. Meissner expulsion is substantially reduced in the CDW region, indicating competition between the CDW and superconductivity. The low-temperature resistivity is higher in the CDW part of the phase diagram, consistent with the reduced density of states due to CDW gapping. Its temperature dependence just above T c shows signs of non-Fermi liquid behavior in a cone-like composition pattern. We conclude that the Ca 3 (Ir 1-x Rh x ) 4 Sn 13 alloy is a good candidate for a composition-driven quantum critical point at ambient pressure.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2018

On the IR-resummation in the EFTofLSS

Here, we propose a simplification for the IR-resummation scheme of [1] and also include its next-to-leading order corrections coming from the tree-level three-point function of the long displacement field. First we show that the new simplified formula shares the same properties of the resummation of [2]. In Fourier space, the IR-resummed power spectrum has no residual wiggles and the two-loop calculation matches the non-linear power spectrum of the Dark Sky simulation at z = 0 up to k ≃ 0.34 h Mpc –1 within cosmic variance. Then, we find that the additional subleading terms (although parametrically infrared-enhanced) modify the leading-order IR-resummed correlation function only in a marginal way, implying that the IR-resummation scheme can robustly predict the shape of the BAO peak.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2026

IR side of bounds on theories with spontaneously broken Lorentz symmetry

In nature, some UV features of dynamics are reflected in IR quantities. In fully relativistic theories, this connection can be probed through the analyticity properties of scattering amplitudes, allowing one to understand which IR theories respect the UV assumptions of quantum field theory. The ensuing analyticity bounds can usually be rephrased as the absence of faster-than-light propagation for low-energy excitations. While it is interesting to understand these relations and their IR characterization for theories that have less idealized properties, it is also more difficult to derive analyticity bounds in these cases. For theories that spontaneously break Lorentz symmetry, recent progress was made by considering correlators of conserved currents and their analyticity properties. In this work, we focus on such theories and work to close the gap from the IR side, finding a natural way to express the known analyticity bounds purely in terms of low-energy kinematical quantities. Our analysis shows that the bounds require gapped excitations to have a slower speed than the gapless ones, at least for momenta that are low with respect to the mass gap. These results suggest a way to interpret the UV/IR connection in more complex theories.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2025

Three-dimensional lattice modulations in the charge density wave system Lu 2 Ir 3 Si 5

Using total and resonant x-ray scattering coupled to large-scale computer modeling, we study the lattice modulations in the complex charge density wave (CDW) material Lu 2 ⁢Ir 3 ⁢Si 5 . Here, we find that it is a unique quantum system where periodic lattice modulations related to emergent CDW order occur in three orthogonal atomic planes of the crystal lattice, leading to the emergence of an unusual three-dimensional (3D) pattern of short and long Ir-Ir and Lu-Lu bonds. The 3D character of observed lattice modulations explains the largely isotropic character of the changes in the electronic properties occurring when the CDW order sets in, demonstrating the strong electron-lattice coupling in Lu 2 ⁢Ir 3 ⁢Si 5 . The result is supported by DFT calculations based on the experimental structure data. Altogether, our work provides strong evidence for the presence of a relationship between the dimensionality of emergent lattice distortions and that of concurrent changes in the electronic properties of CDW materials. The relationship may need to be accounted for when these materials are explored for practical applications.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2020

Magnetism of Ir 5 + -based double perovskites: Unraveling its nature and the influence of structure

A combination of x-ray-diffraction, x-ray absorption, x-ray magnetic circular dichroism, macroscopic magnetization, and muon-spin relaxation measurements is used to investigate the interplay between structure (both crystallography and microstructure) and magnetism in Sr 2 YIrO 6 as a function of both chemical (Ca-doping) and physical (hydrostatic) pressure. X-ray absorption spectroscopy clearly shows that the physical pressure is more effective in modifying the structure. On the other hand, the dichroic measurements evidence a constant magnetic signal with physical pressure and strong differences with Ca-doping. Muon-spin relaxation reveals the presence of magnetic order, even when this is hidden in the magnetization data. From the combined analysis, the magnetic results are explained in terms of the presence of Ir 6+ or Ir 4+ ions in magnetic clusters, most likely located at and triggered by antisite disorder. The measurements under high physical pressure indicate that the magnetic state is independent of the crystallographic details such as Ir-O distances and Ir-O-Y angles.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2020

Ferromagnetic cluster-glass phase in Ca(Co 1-x Ir x ) 2-y As 2 crystals

In this study, single crystals of Ca(Co 1-x Ir x ) 2-y As 2 with 0≤x≤0.35 and 0.10≤y≤0.14 have been grown using the self-flux technique and characterized by single-crystal x-ray diffraction (XRD), energy-dispersive x-ray spectroscopy, magnetization M, and magnetic susceptibility χ measurements versus temperature T, magnetic field H, and time t, and heat-capacity C p (H,T) measurements. The XRD refinements reveal that all the Ir-substituted crystals crystallize in a collapsed-tetragonal structure as does the parent CaCo 2-y As 2 compound. A small 3.3% Ir substitution for Co in CaCo 1.86 As 2 drastically lowers the A-type antiferromagnetic (AFM) transition temperature T N from 52 to 23 K with a significant enhancement of the Sommerfeld electronic heat-capacity coefficient. The A-type AFM structure consists of ab-plane layers of spins ferromagnetically aligned along the c axis with AFM alignment of the spins in adjacent layers along this axis. The positive Weiss temperatures obtained from Curie-Weiss fits to the χ(T>T N ) data indicate that the dominant magnetic interactions are ferromagnetic (FM) for all x. A magnetic phase boundary is inferred to be present between x=0.14 and x=0.17 from a discontinuity in the x dependencies of the effective moment and Weiss temperature in the Curie-Weiss fits. FM fluctuations that strongly increase with increasing x are also revealed from the χ(T) data. Furthermore, the magnetic ground state for x≥0.17 is a spin glass as indicated by hysteresis in χ(T) between field-cooled and zero-field-cooled measurements and from the relaxation of M in a small field that exhibits a stretched-exponential time dependence. The spin glass has a small FM component to the ordering and is hence inferred to be comprised of small FM clusters. The competing AFM and FM interactions along with crystallographic disorder associated with Ir substitution are inferred to be responsible for the development of a FM cluster-glass phase. A logarithmic T dependence of Cp at low T for x=0.14 is consistent with the presence of significant FM quantum fluctuations. This composition is near the T=0 boundary at x≈0.16 between the A-type AFM phase containing ferromagnetically-aligned layers of spins and the FM cluster-glass phase.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2016

Simultaneous metal-insulator and antiferromagnetic transitions in orthorhombic perovskite iridate Sr 0.94 Ir 0.78 O 2.68 single crystals

The orthorhombic perovskite SrIrO 3 is a semimetal, an intriguing exception in iridates where the strong spin-orbit interaction coupled with electron correlations tends to impose an insulating state. Here, we report results of our investigation of bulk single-crystal Sr 0.94 Ir 0.78 O 2.68 or Ir-deficient, orthorhombic perovskite SrIrO 3 . It retains the same crystal structure as stoichiometric SrIrO 3 but exhibits a sharp, simultaneous antiferromagnetic (AFM) and metal-insulator (MI) transition occurring in the basal-plane resistivity at 185 K. Above it, the basal-plane resistivity features an extended regime of almost linear temperature dependence up to 800 K but the strong electronic anisotropy renders an insulating behavior in the out-of-plane resistivity. The Hall resistivity undergoes an abrupt sign change and grows below 40 K, which along with the Sommerfeld constant of 20 mJ/mol K 2 suggests a multiband effect. All results including our first-principles calculations underscore a delicacy of the paramagnetic, metallic state in SrIrO 3 that is in close proximity to an AFM insulating state. The contrasting ground states in isostructural Sr 0.94 Ir 0.78 O 2.68 and SrIrO 3 illustrate a critical role of lattice distortions and Ir deficiency in rebalancing the ground state in the iridates. Finally, the concurrent AFM and MI transitions reveal a direct correlation between the magnetic transition and formation of an activation gap in the iridate, which is conspicuously absent in Sr 2 IrO 4 .

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2016

Strong anisotropy within a Heisenberg model in the J eff = 1 2 insulating state of Sr 2 Ir 0.8 Ru 0.2 O 4

The dispersive magnetic excitations in Sr 2 IrO 4 have previously been well described within an isospin-1/2 Heisenberg model on a square lattice that revealed parallels with La 2 CuO 4 . In this paper, we investigate the inelastic spectra of Sr 2 Ir 0.8 Ru 0.2 O 4 with resonant inelastic x-ray scattering (RIXS) at the Ir L 3 edge. The results are well described using linear spin-wave theory within a similar Heisenberg model applicable to Sr 2 IrO 4 ; however, the disorder induced by the substitution of 20% Ir 4+ ions for Ru 4+ removes longer range exchange interactions. A large spin gap (40 meV) is measured indicating strong anisotropy from spin-orbit coupling that is manifest due to the altered magnetic structure in Sr 2 Ir 0.8 Ru 0.2 O 4 with c-axis aligned moments compared to the basal plane moments in the parent. Finally, collectively the results indicate the robustness of a Heisenberg model description even when the magnetic structure is altered and the J eff = 1/2 moments are diluted.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2024

UV massive resonance from IR double copy consistency

From the perspective of effective field theory (EFT), Wilson coefficients of the low energy theory are determined by integrating out modes of the full ultraviolet (UV) theory. The spectrum can be in principle resummed if one has access to all available infrared (IR) coefficients at low energies. In this work we show that there exists a general class of consistent massive resonance double-copy (CMRDC) models where UV massive residues are reconstructed through double-copy consistency conditions between the IR Wilson coefficients of the full EFT expansion. Through a color-dual bootstrap, we find surprisingly that double-copy consistency alone introduces the kinematic factors of CMRDC models that soften high energy behavior by exponentiating color-dual contacts. This bootstrap suggests that our massive resonance paradigm is an inevitable consequence of the duality between color and kinematics, thereby providing a path towards emergent UV structure directly from the IR. We then demonstrate how CMRDC models can capture a spectrum of massive modes compatible with general multiplicity, and use Padé extrapolation to solve the inverse problem of identifying massive UV resonance from a small number of IR Wilson coefficients. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2019

Complex transport and magnetism in inhomogeneous mixed valence Ce 3 Ir 4 Ge 13

We report the discovery of Ce 3 Ir 4 Ge 13 , a Remeika phase with a complex array of structural, electronic, and magnetic properties. In this work, our single crystal x-ray diffraction measurements show that Ce 3 Ir 4 Ge 13 forms in the tetragonally distorted $I4_1/amd$ space group, which has three distinct rare earth sites. The electrical resistivity is almost temperature independent over three decades in temperature, from 0.4 K to 400 K, while the Hall coefficient measurements are consistent with a low-carrier semimetal. Magnetic susceptibility measurements reveal an effective moment, $μ^\text{exp}_\text{eff} = 1.87μ_B/$Ce, that falls significantly short of the expected value for Ce 3+ , suggesting that two of the rare earth sites are occupied by magnetic Ce 3+ while the third is occupied by nonmagnetic Ce 4+ . Upon cooling, Ce 3 Ir 4 Ge 13 first enters a short range magnetically ordered state below $T_\text{SRO}$ = 10 K, marked by a deviation from Curie-Weiss behavior in susceptibility and a broad field-independent heat capacity anomaly. At lower temperatures, we observe a second, sharper peak in the heat capacity at $T^\ast$ = 1.7 K, concurrent with a splitting of the field-cooled and zero-field-cooled susceptibilities. A small resistivity drop at $T^\ast$ suggests a loss of spin disorder scattering consistent with a magnetic ordering or spin freezing transition. Ce 3 Ir 4 Ge 13 is therefore a rare example of an inhomogeneous mixed valence compound with a complex array of thermodynamic and transport properties.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2014

IR laser-induced protein crystal transformation

A novel method and the associated instrumentation for improving crystalline order (higher resolution of X-ray diffraction and reduced mosaicity) of protein crystals by precisely controlled heating is demonstrated. Crystal transformation is optically controlled by a video system. A method and the design of instrumentation, and its preliminary practical realisation, including test experiments, with the object of inducing phase changes of biomolecular crystals by controlled dehydration through heating with infrared (IR) light are described. The aim is to generate and select crystalline phases through transformation in the solid state which have improved order (higher resolution in X-ray diffraction experiments) and reduced mosaic spread (more uniformly aligned mosaic blocks) for diffraction data collection and analysis. The crystal is heated by pulsed and/or constant IR laser irradiation. Loss of crystal water following heating and its reabsorption through equilibration with the environment is measured optically by a video system. Heating proved superior to traditional controlled dehydration by humidity change for the test cases CODH (carbon monoxide dehydrogenase) and CLK2 (a protein kinase). Heating with IR light is experimentally simple and offers an exploration of a much broader parameter space than the traditional method, as it allows the option of varying the rate of phase changes through modification of the IR pulse strength, width and repeat frequency. It impacts the crystal instantaneously, isotropically and homogeneously, and is therefore expected to cause less mechanical stress.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2013

Development and implementation of a remote audit tool for high dose rate (HDR) Ir-192 brachytherapy using optically stimulated luminescence dosimetry

Purpose: The aim of this work was to create a mailable phantom with measurement accuracy suitable for Radiological Physics Center (RPC) audits of high dose-rate (HDR) brachytherapy sources at institutions participating in National Cancer Institute-funded cooperative clinical trials. Optically stimulated luminescence dosimeters (OSLDs) were chosen as the dosimeter to be used with the phantom.Methods: The authors designed and built an 8 × 8 × 10 cm{sup 3} prototype phantom that had two slots capable of holding Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}:C OSLDs (nanoDots; Landauer, Glenwood, IL) and a single channel capable of accepting all {sup 192}Ir HDR brachytherapy sources in current clinical use in the United States. The authors irradiated the phantom with Nucletron and Varian {sup 192}Ir HDR sources in order to determine correction factors for linearity with dose and the combined effects of irradiation energy and phantom characteristics. The phantom was then sent to eight institutions which volunteered to perform trial remote audits.Results: The linearity correction factor was k{sub L}= (−9.43 × 10{sup −5}× dose) + 1.009, where dose is in cGy, which differed from that determined by the RPC for the same batch of dosimeters using {sup 60}Co irradiation. Separate block correction factors were determined for current versions of both Nucletron and Varian {sup 192}Ir HDR sources and these vendor-specific correction factors differed by almost 2.6%. For the Nucletron source, the correction factor was 1.026 [95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.023–1.028], and for the Varian source, it was 1.000 (95% CI = 0.995–1.005). Variations in lateral source positioning up to 0.8 mm and distal/proximal source positioning up to 10 mm had minimal effect on dose measurement accuracy. The overall dose measurement uncertainty of the system was estimated to be 2.4% and 2.5% for the Nucletron and Varian sources, respectively (95% CI). This uncertainty was sufficient to establish a ±5% acceptance criterion for source strength audits under a formal RPC audit program. Trial audits of four Nucletron sources and four Varian sources revealed an average RPC-to-institution dose ratio of 1.000 (standard deviation = 0.011).Conclusions: The authors have created an OSLD-based {sup 192}Ir HDR brachytherapy source remote audit tool which offers sufficient dose measurement accuracy to allow the RPC to establish a remote audit program with a ±5% acceptance criterion. The feasibility of the system has been demonstrated with eight trial audits to date.

61 RADIATION PROTECTION AND DOSIMETRY↗