[6]See [Appendix] for a description of types of radiation-detection instruments.
[7]See Radioisotopes and Life Processes, another booklet in this series, for a discussion of one area of biomedical research.
[8]A positron is an “antielectron”. It has the mass of an electron but a positive charge.
[9]A collimator is a focusing device consisting of a series of slits between blocks of shielding material. Consult the [Appendix] for descriptions of other instruments mentioned here.
[10]The superscript m after this isotope indicates an excited state of the atom.
[11]As radioactive nuclei disintegrate, they change to other radioactive forms—their “daughter” products. Every radioisotope is thus part of a chain or series of steps that ends with a stable form. Technetium-99m is a daughter product of molybdenum-99; it decays by a process known as isomeric transition to a state of lower energy and longer half-life.
[12]The curie is the basic unit of radiation intensity. One curie is approximately the amount of radioactivity in 1 gram of radium.
[13]See Your Body and Radiation and The Genetic Effects of Radiation, other booklets in this series, for detailed explanations of radiation effects.
[14]The use of radium is not under AEC control.
[15]One family of measuring instruments is described in
Whole Body Counters,
another booklet in this series. These are large devices that make use of scintillating crystals or liquids.