Ionizing Radiation

Ionizing radiation

Ionizing radiation is any radiation whose interaction with the environment leads to the formation of electrical charges of different signs. When ionizing radiation interacts with any substance, electrically neutral atoms turn into charged atoms - ions, since radiation contributes to the loss or gain of electrons by atoms. When an electron is lost from its orbit, the atom becomes a positive ion, and when an electron is gained, it becomes a negative ion.

Ionizing radiation became known after the discovery in 1895 by the German physicist W.K. X-rays, as well as the discovery in 1896 by the French scientist A. Becquerel of the phenomenon of radioactivity.

There are quantum (electromagnetic) ionizing radiation, which includes x-rays and gamma radiation, and corpuscular ionizing radiation, consisting of various nuclear particles (alpha particles, beta particles, neutrons, protons, etc.).

Under natural conditions, ionizing radiation arises as a result of physical processes in stars and, coming to Earth from outer space, constantly affects the flora and fauna of the Earth. The Earth's atmosphere absorbs a significant portion of these radiations and thereby protects the inhabitants of the Earth from their harmful effects. Natural and artificial radioactive isotopes can also be a source of ionizing radiation.

The possibility of obtaining artificial radioactive isotopes appeared after the discovery of the phenomenon of artificial radioactivity (Irène and Frederic Joliot-Curie, 1934). The biological properties of ionizing radiation make it possible to use them in medicine in the diagnosis of diseases (x-ray examination, radioisotope diagnostics) and treatment of patients (radiation therapy) suffering from tumor, inflammatory and some other diseases.

Ionizing radiation can also have adverse biological effects. The harmful effects of radiation on the body became known in the first years after their discovery, but special attention was drawn to this after the mass destruction of people during the explosion of atomic bombs in the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Systematic study of the biological effects of ionizing radiation by radiologists makes it possible to develop effective and at the same time safe methods of research and treatment of people with disabilities.