Wireless hydrogen pressure dosimeter for nuclear high dose monitoring

Abstract

This communication reports the very first experimental results on an original wireless, chipless and passive (battery-less) sensor for monitoring high doses of nuclear radiation. The micro-sensor combines a miniature hydrogen pressure dosimeter with a passive microwave resonator. The pressure response is derived from S11-parameter measurement using vacuum and atmospheric pressure conditions. After e-beam irradiation (20kGy) the resonant frequency shift of the resonator ranges between 0.12%/kGy and 0.42%/kGy while the hydrogen pressure inside the cavity varies from 20mbar/kGy to 90mbar/kGy. No significant frequency shift is observed when using sensors during 6 months. These results demonstrate that a good hydrogen hermetic seal was fabricated during the manufacturing process of the constitutive micro-cavity.

Microelectromechanical Transducer to Monitor High-Doses of Nuclear Irradiation

“…Their relative contribution depends on the polymer type and irradiation conditions (e.g., the dose level, atmosphere properties, irradiation type, among others) [ 12 , 16 , 28 , 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 ]. Following [ 7 , 8 ] the overpressure measurement resulting from polymer outgassing can be used to estimate the irradiation dose. As sketched in Figure 1 a, the passive Radio Frequency (RF) dosimeter based on overpressure measurement is composed of a polymer material, which is sealed inside an airtight cavity and releases gases from radiolysis when subjected to ionizing radiation.…”

“…Since borosilicate glass is mainly composed of Si-O bonds, γ-rays are expected to weakly impact the bonding interface. Furthermore, since anodic bonding was previously used for the fabrication of sensors working under ionizing radiation in spatial environment [ 49 , 60 , 61 ] or placed in irradiated areas [ 7 , 8 , 53 ], this bonding technique is a priori suitable for the fabrication of passive dosimeters. Consequently, high resistivity silicon (HR Si) [ 62 ] and borofloat B33 substrates [ 63 ] are chosen for the membrane and resonator substrates, respectively.…”

“…Moreover, complex methods are often applied during the measurement process, such as electron spin resonance spectroscopy for alanine-based dosimeters [ 4 ]. Passive HPD dosimeters using microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) technology and a polymer as reactive material under irradiation have been recently proposed in [ 7 ] using a long-range wireless radio-frequency sensing technique that exceeds 3.5 m [ 8 ]. These dosimeters may be advantageously used for the remote and real-time measurement of irradiation doses.…”

“…These dosimeters may be advantageously used for the remote and real-time measurement of irradiation doses. Very preliminary results are reported in [ 7 ] on these very promising devices, but to date proof-of-concept is not established.…”

Wireless and passive nuclear radiation sensors

“…The remote interrogation of the fabricated nuclear radiation sensors using a FMCW (Frequency-Modulated Continuous-Wave) microwave radar is proposed in this section. This radar technique is described in details in [5] and allows obtaining radiation information by limiting human intervention at the sensors location. To illustrate the feasibility of such measurement, the radiation sensor is loaded by an impedance of 50Ω at the input port and a horn antenna through a delay line (effective length of 4.0 meters) at its output port.…”