Radiation chemistry of liquid water with heavy ions; Steady-state and pulse radiolysis studies

Yamashita, Shinichi; Taguchi, Mitsumasa; Baldacchino, G.*; Katsumura, Yosuke

Irradiation effects induced by heavy ions are much different from those by low-LET radiations. Such distinctiveness has been applied to cancer therapy, surface processing, analytical techniques, and so on. However, detailed mechanism through which such distinctiveness appears has not been clarified yet. In this chapter, what have experimentally been found recently, especially within these five years, in water radiolysis with positively-charged atomic heavy ions are shown. Steady-state radiolysis studies and pulse radiolysis studies are separately summarized because these two approaches inherently involve own advantages and limitations. Gathering reported products yields and kinetics, track structures and intra-track dynamics are discussed. One of the most characteristic features of recent studies is that track-segment or -differential yields were intensively measured compared to earlier studies.