Alanine dosimetry is an internationally approved technique for the dose measurement in various radiation fields.In the amino acid alanine irradiation with ionizing radiation causes the production of radicals (unpaired electrons), of which the number is proportional to the dose absorbed over a wide dose range. The crystalline structure of the tissue equivalent dosimeter material counteracts the recombination of radicals. A fading of the signal generated in the alanine is only observed at dose values above 3kGy and lies within the range of a few percent per year.

The non-destructive readout of the radiation induced measuring signal is performed by the procedure of electron spin resonance (ESR). With careful adjustment of the ESR-spectrometer and by using the appropriate dosimeters dose values within the range from 2Gy to 200kGy can be determined (with an overall uncertainty of 3.5 %, at confidence level of 95 %).

Alanine dosimeters are small, compact and easy to handle. They are characterized by low influence of temperature, humidity and dose rate as well as a wide measuring range, which makes them applicable for radiation therapy, in blood components irradiators and in industrial irradiation facilities. Because of its high quality and low costs the dosimetry system can be utilized both for reference and routine dosimetry.