The Effect of X-ray Security Imaging on Optically Stimulated Luminescence Personnel Dosimetry

Federal regulations mandate that all radiological workers in the United States, as well as those individuals who may receive non-trivial occupational doses of radiation, must have their external radiation doses monitored and tracked as accurately as possible. Typically, this is done through the use of personnel dosimetry devices, such as optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dosimeters, which are worn on the body and keep an accurate record of the radiation to which a person has been exposed over a period of time. Unfortunately, the inadvertent passage of OSL dosimeters through airport x-ray security scanners can compromise the accuracy of this running dose record and therefore impede the ability for employers to accurately report work-related doses. With the advent of advanced resolution security technology used in many airports, this once relatively minor issue now requires that the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) Radiological Controls organization be able to accurately discern non-occupational doses received in this way. This research will discuss the methods and models for adjusting dose readings for Landauer InLight Model 2 OSL personnel dosimeters used at the INL that have been subjected to three types of x-ray scans commonly used at airport checkpoints, and the implications of these data across the rest of the US DOE complex.