Who we are

The Ionising Radiation Laboratory (Dutch acronym: ISP) is part of Utrecht University and offers a hands-on practical on ionising radiation – specifically radioactivity and X-ray radiation. These sessions are primarily intended for final-year high school physics classes (HAVO and VWO). The ISP was established to enable schools to give students safe, practical experience with this otherwise abstract topic, which is typically hard to cover experimentally in schools.

The practical is led by four lab leaders: Dagmar Jongenelen, Laura van Leeuwen, Jeroen de Meij, and Rob van Rijn. One of them will visit your school.

What the ISP does

The ISP operates with three mobile sets that allow them to offer the practicum nationwide. These are transported by car and set up in a school laboratory for the day. At the end of the day, everything is packed up again. There is also a fixed lab facility at the university, which schools can visit instead of hosting the mobile set.

During a session, you perform a selection of experiments, grouped into three categories:

• Half-life
• Absorption
• X-ray en miscellaneous

The practical can be carried out in two different ways: the closed variant and the open variant (i.e. guided worksheets vs. self-developed work plans). Which variant you do depends on the choice of your teacher.

Preparing for the Practical

Before attending the practical, there are several things you can prepare. You can read through our information booklet. At the very least, make sure to read the introduction and the part about radiation safety at the end of the booklet.

Preparation for the open variant is slightly different from preparation for the closed variant. Ask your teacher which variant you will be doing.

In the open variant of the practical, you must think for yourself about the work plan you will use to carry out the experiment. Based on a number of guidelines, you will design and set up your own work plan. It is useful to prepare for the practical in advance. Ask your teacher for the open variant worksheets. Use these worksheets to think ahead about:

• The title of the research
• The research question
• A hypothesis
• A measurement plan to test your hypothesis

You can also read the information about the experiment in our information booklet. During the practical, we will also bring several printed copies of our information booklet.

On the day of the practical, please note:

• Bring a pencil case (pen, pencil, ruler), a calculator, and your BINAS reference book.
• Bags are not allowed at the tables. Place them in a bag rack or at another central location.
• Eating and drinking are not permitted in the lab.