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•
Directly ionizing:
(charged particles) electrons, protons, light ions …
Radiation deposits energy in the medium through direct Coulomb
interactions (
→
charged) with orbital electrons of atoms in the medium
•
Indirectly ionizing:
(neutral particles) photons, neutrons
Radiation deposits energy in the medium through a two step process: a
charged particle is released in the medium (
→
e
-
, e
+
; n
→
p or heavier ions)
the released charged particle acts as a directly ionizing radiation
Ionizing Radiation (IR)