Performance comparison of neutron and X-ray sensitive photo-stimulated imaging plates

Statistical characteristics of photo-stimulated luminescent (PSL) signals are studied using thermal neutrons, X- and γ-rays. It is shown that the statistical fluctuation of PSL is described simply by the PSL1 value itself and is independent of radiation type, except for short-range high-LET particles. However, it is expected that the spatial resolution should be affected if the range of electrons or secondaries were much longer than the instrumental resolution (pixel size). When output PSL signals are compared between X- and γ-rays, the PSL values were proportional to the exposed air dose, independent of X-ray energy. However, signals from 60Co γ-rays were 1% of 22–40 kV X-ray output at the same dose.