Physical Processes in Radiation Biology

Physical Processes in Radiation Biology covers the proceedings of an International Symposium on Physical Processes in Radiation Biology, held at the Kellogg Center for Continuing Education, Michigan State University on May 6-8, 1963, sponsored by the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission. The symposium aims to address the core problems of radiation biology concerning the absorption, distribution, and utilization of high energy packets in biological systems. This book is composed of 21 chapters, and begins with an introduction to the absorption, excitation, and transfer processes in molecular solids. The subsequent chapters discuss the nature of exciton processes; the mechanisms of charge transport in biological materials; the interactions of fast and slow electrons with model systems; the importance of liquid structures in determining the development of radiation damage; and the nature of the metastable species formed. The concluding chapters explore the importance of charge migration in energy transfer processes in different biological systems and the significance of higher excited levels in charge migration and energy transfer. These chapters also describe the nature of the hydration of electrons and protons in aqueous systems. This book will be of great value to radiation biologists, biophysicists, physical chemists, and physicists.