IRIS - Ionizing Radiation Facilities

Infrastructures designed to investigate, develop and apply ionizing radiation technologies were installed in 2008 in the framework of a FCT project (REEQ/996/BIO/2005). Presently they are part of the ionizing radiation facilities laboratory (IRIS), and are managed by the Radiation, Elements and Isotopes Research Group (GREI).

Both internal and external users have available an experimental Cobalt-60 irradiation facility with a sample rotation device to achieve uniform dose distribution at sample position, and a Linear Particle Accelerator (LINAC), delivering electron beams or photon beams, with electron energies of 8 MeV to 12 MeV, and X-ray energies ranging from 4 MeV up to 10 MeV.
The LINAC resumed recently operation after a two year shut-down, due to a serious malfunction that required replacement of key components.

Fotos of the 60Co irradiator, and of the sample positioning and rotation equipment. This last has surperimposed a plot of the dose distribution at a reference height, as a function of the distance to the entrance of the iradiation camera.

Fotos of the working area of IRIS, of the entrance of the LINAC shielding labyrinth and of a detail of the electronics of the LINAC.


The irradiation work at IRIS benefits from the local expertise and equipment available at the Clean Areas Technological Tests Laboratory (LETAL).

Contacts:

António Falcão   219946151 / 219946370

Pedro Santos    219946090 / 219946370