Spatial distribution of radiation defects in tooth enamel

The spatial distribution of radiation defects in tooth enamel has been inve stigated using EPR imaging. Plates of enamel irradiated with gamma rays and electrons with energy 1.2 and 3.8 MeV have been studied. A falloff of the radiation-defect concentration in the direction in which the radiation acts is detected in the electron-irradiated plates, with the slope of the fallo ff decreasing with increasing electron energy. The defect distribution was uniform in the gamma-irradiated plates. It is shown that the study of tooth enamel by means of EPR imaging can be used to determine the type and energ y characteristics of the ionizing radiation that acts on a living organism. (C) 1999 American Institute of Physics. [S1063-7834(99)01607-X].