Z dependence of photon interactions in wood materials

Abstract

Transmission experiments were performed on wood in a narrow-beam geometry using a collimated gamma ray beam at 59.5 and 661.6 keV. The mass attenuation coefficients were determined from experiment, and effective atomic numbers were computed from theoretical equations. It was found that the mass attenuation coefficient decreases with increasing photon energy. Experimental values were compared with those from the XCOM database and with analytical results, and good agreement was achieved. This type of study gives some insight about photon interactions with wood materials.