Accelerated Color Development of Irradiated Radiochromic Dye Films

The radiochromic dye films developed by Chalkley and McLaughlin are quickly becoming one of the principal methods for secondary dosimetry. Their useful dose and dose rate ranges, long-term color stability, small and flexible size, and ease of reading make them ideal for spatial dose distribution measurements in the complex targets often encountered in industry. At room temperature, however, their response is slow, requiring several hours after irradiation for full color development. This work examines the effect of humidity on the film's time response and describes a method for accelerating the film's color development. By keeping the film in a controlled humidity environment or through a simple heating technique, the film can be read in minutes instead of hours after irradiation. The results are shown to be identical to those of films stored for 24 hours at room temperature.