Following their successful first creation of Fluorescent Nuclear Track Detector (FNTD) reader instruments for Landauer (Glenwood, IL), Avo Photonics (Horsham, PA) has developed a second-generation instrument that features improved image quality, faster scanning, and more rugged packaging.
A breakthrough in tools for radiation protection, medical dosimetry, and radiobiology research was achieved in 2005 by Landauer with the innovation of FNTD. These wearable badges enable measuring neutron and other particle exposure through imaging of fluorescent tracks induced by radiation in aluminum oxide crystals. Neutrons interact with different converter materials on the top surface of the crystal and thereby produce recoil protons or alpha particles that in turn generate discernible tracks in the volume of the crystal. The FNTD reader instrument consists of a finely tuned optical system based on an automated confocal microscope that images and processes radiation-induced tracks and eventually calculates the neutron dose.
With a 30X faster readout, larger detector areas can be scanned with improved counting statistics without sacrificing image quality. This is achieved through a line-scanning method, high-power laser, and image and data processing. Moreover, with no moving elements in the optical path, the instrument is optically stable and rugged.