Survey results of radiation detector for the Israeli first responders

The following report describes a thorough examination of six types of detectors for the Israeli Ministry of Defense (IMOD), conducted by the Secondary Standard Dosimetry Laboratory (SSDL) in the Radiation Safety Division (RSD) at the Soreq Nuclear Research Center (SNRC). These detectors are intended to serve as instruments for the first responders of the State of Israel in the event of a suspected radiological terrorism incident. As a preliminary step to this examination, the RSD conducted a market survey encompassing 42 commercially available detectors. Out of these, seven detector models were recommended for further evaluation, and the IMOD successfully procured six for testing purposes. The radiation examination summarized in this report included tests of dose and dose rate alarm thresholds, accuracy and repeatability of dose rate measurement and dose accumulation, the impact of environmental conditions on detector performance, and battery lifetime measurements in background and high radiation fields. Six detector types were tested in our survey, while the RSD recommendations are to continue the evaluation of the three detector models that scored above 80 % of the maximum rating: detector C, detector D, and detector F. The recommended evaluation focuses on the functionality and ease of use of these detectors by first responder teams.