Radiation Measurement Units - Radiation Alert Inspector + Manuel D'instructions

shielding is generally required to stop them.
Beta radiation A beta particle consists of an electron emitted from an atom. It
has more mass and less energy than a gamma ray, so it doesn't penetrate matter
as deeply as gamma and X-rays.
Alpha radiation An alpha particle consists of two protons and two neutrons, the
same as the nucleus of a helium atom. It generally can travel no more than 1 to 3
inches in air before stopping, and can be stopped by a piece of paper.
Decay: When an atom emits an alpha or beta particle or a gamma ray, it
becomes a different type of atom. Radioactive substances may go through
several stages of decay before they change into a stable, or non-ionizing, form.
For example; U-238 has 14 different stages of decay before it stabilizes.
An element may have several forms, or isotopes. A radioactive isotope of an
element may be called "radioisotope". However, the more correct term is
radionuclide.
Half-life: Each radionuclide has a characteristic half-life, which is the time
required for half of a quantity of the material to decay.

Radiation Measurement Units

Several different units are used to measure radiation, exposure to it and dosage.
A roentgen is the amount of X-radiation or gamma radiation that produces one
electrostatic unit of charge in one cc of dry air at 0° C and 760 mm of mercury
atmospheric pressure. The Inspector+ displays in milliroentgens per hour
(mR/hr).
A rad is the unit of exposure to ionizing radiation equal to an energy of 100 ergs
per gram of irradiated material. This is approximately equal to 1.07 roentgen.
A rem is the dosage received from exposure to a rad. It is the number of rads
multiplied by the quality factor of the particular source of radiation. The rem and
millirem are the most commonly-used measurement units of radiation dose in the
U.S. 1 rem= 1rad.
A sievert is the standard international measurement of dose. One sievert is
23