Influence of gelling agents on the dosimetric performance of the Turnbull Blue gel dosimeter

Gelling agents such as agarose, phytagel, and several types of gelatin were used for preparation of Turnbull Blue radiochromic gel dosimeter. Their influence on gel dose response and background value was assessed. It was found that all gelatins cause significant increase of background in a short period of time after gel preparation therefore gelatin is not a suitable gelling agent for this dosimeter. Phytagel and agarose gels exhibit low and stable background and higher dose sensitivity than gelatin gels; however, the disadvantage is increased scattered light intensity in the gel in comparison to gelatin gels. A simple measurement was done demonstrating that the scattered light intensity significantly increases in phytagel and agarose gel in comparison to gelatin gels.