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Beta radiation is ionising radiation that is produced during a certain type of radioactive decay - beta decay - of atomic nuclei.
Fuel rods contain the nuclear fuel that is used to operate nuclear power plants. Fuel rods consist of a cladding tube and the fuel pellets.
The dose rate indicates the intensity with which ionising radiation acts in a certain period of time. It is given in grays per second. In medical radiation physics, however, it hardly plays a role - here, the equivalent dose or the effective dose are important.
The pressurised water reactor belongs to the class of light water reactors. In Germany, the pressurised water reactor is the most widely used type of reactor: a total of seven of the nine nuclear power plants in operation are equipped with a pressurised water reactor.
In the field of nuclear energy, the term "disposal" refers to the safe, maintenance-free disposal of radioactive waste in a bespoke repository for an unlimited period of time. In this case, safe means that the radioactive materials are kept isolated from the environment.
The European Pressurised Water Reactor (EPR) is a new type of reactor with a net capacity of 1,600 megawatts. EPRs are currently under construction in Finland (Olkiluoto), France (Flamanville) and China (Taishan).
The effect of ionising radiation on the human organism is called radiation exposure. Radioactive substances can lead to exposure in different ways. These possible pathways are called exposure pathways.
Gamma radiation is a form of ionising radiation. Unlike alpha and beta radiation, it is not particle radiation but electromagnetic radiation consisting of photons or quanta.
The half-life indicates the period of time in which the quantity and thus also the activity of a radionuclide is reduced to half by decay.
Each radionuclide has a specific half-life. The range extends from fractions of a second to 520 trillion times the age of the universe.
The Incident Reporting System (IRS) is a documentation system for operating experience with nuclear power plants.