Units 

of Radiation Becquerel and Sievert
Becquerel (Bq) Sievert (Sv)
Unit of radiation exposure dose that a 
Unit indicating the amount of radioactivity
person receives
Associated with radiation effects 
One nucleus decays per second = 
1 becquerel (Bq)

Units of Radiation
2.3
Radioactive 
materials

1 mSv from outside  1 mSv from within 

the body the body

Nearly equal effects on 
the human body

"Becquerel" and "sievert" are the most common units of radiation. Becquerel is a unit
of radioactivity and focuses on where radiation comes from. It is used to express the
amount of radioactive materials contained in soil, foods, tap water, etc. The higher the
value expressed in becquerels, the larger the radiation being emitted. Sievert is a unit of
radiation exposure dose that a person receives and is used with regard to what is exposed
to radiation, i.e. the human body. The larger the value expressed in sieverts, the larger
the effects of radiation to which the human body is exposed (p.39 of Vol. 1, "Concepts of
Doses: Physical Quantities, Protection Quantities and Operational Quantities").
The extent of radiation effects on the human body varies according to the types of
exposure, i.e., internal or external exposure, or whole-body or local exposure (p.23-p.27
of Vol. 1, "2.1 Exposure Routes"), and according to the types of radiation (p.13-p.22 of
Vol. 1, "1.3 Radiation"). By using sieverts to express all types of exposure, it is possible to
compare their effects on human health.
External exposure of 1 mSv and internal exposure of 1 mSv have equal effects on
health. Exposure to 1 mSv of radiation from outside the body and exposure to 1 mSv of
radiation from within the body mean exposure to a total of 2 mSv of radiation.

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 Units of Radiation Origin of Sievert

Sievert is expressed by the symbol "Sv."

● 1 millisievert (mSv)
= one thousandth of 1 Sv
Units of Radiation
2.3

● 1 microsievert (μSv)
= one thousandth of 1 mSv

Rolf Sievert (1896‐1966)
Founder of the physics laboratory at Sweden's Radiumhemmet
Participated in the foundation of the International Commission on Radiological Protection

The unit "sievert" is named after Rolf Sievert, a Swedish researcher on radiological
protection. He served as the chairman of the International X-ray and Radium Protection
Committee (IXRPC), the predecessor of the International Commission on Radiological
Protection (ICRP), and participated in founding the ICRP.* Millisieverts (one millisievert =
a thousandth of sievert) and microsieverts (one microsievert = a millionth of sievert) are
mostly used to express radiation doses that people receive in their daily lives.
Becquerel (unit of radioactivity), curie (former unit of radioactivity) and gray (unit of
absorbed dose) are all named after researchers who made significant contributions to the
study of radiation.
* It is said that George Kaye at the National Physical Laboratory played a central role in
founding the ICRP.
(Reference: ICRP Publication 109, The History of ICRP and the Evolution of its Policies,
ICRP, 2009)

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34
 Units of Radiation Relationship between Units
Source of radiation Receiving side

Radiation  Absorbed dose*2 Amount of energy absorbed by a substance of 

unit mass that received radiation
intensity*1 Gray (Gy)
Becquerel (Bq) Absorbed energy (J)

Units of Radiation
2.3
Gy＝
Mass of the part 
receiving radiation (kg)
Radioactive  *2: Energy absorbed per 1 kg of substances (Joule: J; 
1J≒0.24 calories); SI unit is J/kg.
materials
Differences in effects depending on types of radiation
*1: Number of nuclei that 
decay per second
Equivalent dose (Sv)
Differences in sensitivity among organs

Effective dose Unit for expressing radiation doses in terms 
Sievert (Sv) of effects on the human body

Units of radiation can be broadly divided into units for sources of radiation and units for the
receiving side. Becquerel, a unit of radioactivity, is used for sources of radiation. Units for
the receiving side are gray and sievert.
When radiation passes through something, its energy is absorbed there. Gray is a unit
for indicating the absorbed dose.
The extent of effects on the human body varies depending on the types and energy
quantities of radiation even if the absorbed doses are the same. Doses weighting health
effects of respective types of radiation are equivalent doses (expressed in sieverts).
The effective dose (expressed in sieverts) was developed for exposure management in
radiological protection. In contrast to the equivalent dose, the effective dose weights
differences in sensitivity among organs and tissues and sums them up to express the
radiation effects on the whole body.

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35
 Units of Radiation Conversion from Gray to Sievert

Multiply Multiply Add up

Radiation 
weighting factor  Tissue weighting 
wR factor wT
Units of Radiation
2.3

Dose that each organ receives Dose that the whole 
(equivalent dose) body receives
Absorbed dose

Effective dose
β‐particles
α‐particles One time
Twenty times

Neutrons
γ‐rays 2.5 to 21 times
One time
Grays  Sieverts 
Differences in effects  Differences in sensitivity  (Sv)
(Gy) depending on types of radiation among organs

To calculate the effective dose that expresses the effects of radiation exposure on the
whole body, it is necessary to first determine the absorbed doses of individual tissues and
organs exposed. The equivalent dose (expressed in sieverts) is obtained by multiplying the
absorbed doses of individual tissues and organs by their respective radiation weighting
factors (WR) for taking into account the types of radiation. The value of the radiation
weighting factor is larger for the types of radiation having larger effects on the human body
(α-particles: 20; β-particles and γ-rays: 1).
Once the equivalent doses for individual tissues and organs exposed to radiation are
determined, they are then multiplied by the respective tissue weighting factors (W T) for
taking into account differences in sensitivity among organs, and the products are summed.
The tissue weighting factors are for weighting the radiation sensitivity of individual tissues
and organs. Any organ or tissue where radiation is likely to induce fatal cancer is given a
higher factor.
The tissue weighting factors summate to 1. Thus, the effective dose can be considered
as the weighted average of the equivalent doses of all organs and tissues. Effective doses
can be calculated similarly for both internal and external exposures.
(Related to p.37 of Vol. 1, "Various Factors")

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36
 Units of Radiation Various Factors
Equivalent dose (Sv) = Radiation weighting factor wR × Absorbed dose (Gy) 
Tissue weighting 
Type of radiation
factor wR
γ‐rays, X‐rays, β‐particles １
Proton beams ２

Units of Radiation
2.3
α‐particles, heavy ions 20
Neutron beams 2.5〜21

Effective dose (Sv) = Σ (Tissue weighting factor wT × Equivalent dose)
Tissue weighting
Tissue
factor wT
Red bone marrow, colon, lungs, stomach, breasts 0.12
Gonad 0.08
Bladder, esophagus, liver, thyroid 0.04
Bone surface, brain, salivary gland, skin 0.01
Total of the remaining tissues 0.12
Sv: sieverts; Gy: grays Source: 2007 Recommendations of the ICRP

Recommendations issued by the International Commission on Radiological Protection

(ICRP) in 2007 presented new radiation weighting factors and tissue weighting factors. It
is stated that α-particles have 20 times larger effects on the human body than γ-rays and
β-particles with the same absorbed doses. Neutron beams are also given high radiation
weighting factors and are expected to have 2.5 to 21 times larger effects on the human
body than γ-rays and β-particles depending on the energy quantities (p.36 of Vol. 1,
"Conversion from Gray to Sievert").
A survey on the health effects of radiation on atomic bomb survivors revealed which
organs and tissues are more prone to the cancer-causing effects of radiation. These tissues
are assigned high tissue weighting factors.
Surveys on the health effects of radiation were also conducted on the children and
grandchildren of atomic bomb survivors but no hereditary effects of radiation were
observed. Therefore, the ICRP lowered the tissue weighting factor for the gonads from
0.2 in the 1990 Recommendations to 0.08 in the 2007 Recommendations. In this way,
the factors used in the calculation of effective doses are updated to accommodate new
findings.

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37
 Units of Radiation Calculation of Equivalent Dose and 
Effective Dose

Effective dose (sievert (Sv)) = Σ (Tissue weighting factor × Equivalent dose)

When the whole body is 
When only the head is 
Units of Radiation
2.3

evenly exposed to 
1 mGy of γ‐ray  exposed to 1 mGy of γ‐ray 
irradiation irradiation
Effective dose = Effective dose =
0.12  X  1 (mSv): bone marrow 0.04 X 1 (mSv): thyroid
+ 0.12 X 1 (mSv): colon + 0.01 X 1 (mSv): brain
+ 0.12 X 1 (mSv): lungs + 0.01 X 1 (mSv): salivary gland
+ 0.12 X 1 (mSv): stomach + 0.12 X 1 (mSv) × 0.1: bone marrow (10%)
: + 0.01 X 1 (mSv) × 0.15: skin (15%)
+ 0.01 X 1 (mSv): skin :
= 1.00 X 1 (mSv)
= 0.07 millisieverts (mSv)
= 1 millisievert (mSv)

Methods for calculating an effective dose when the whole body is evenly exposed to 1
mGy of γ-ray irradiation and an effective dose when only the head is exposed to 1 mGy of
γ-ray irradiation are compared.
Since the radiation weighting factor (WR) for γ-rays is 1, the whole body being evenly
exposed to 1 mGy means that the whole body is evenly exposed to 1 mSv (1 gray × 1
(WR) = 1 millisievert). That is, equivalent doses are 1 mSv for all organs and tissues. To
calculate effective doses, the equivalent doses for individual tissues are multiplied by their
respective tissue weighting factors and the products are summed. Bone marrow, colon,
lungs, stomach and breasts are given a high factor of 0.12 because these are organs with
high risks of radiation-induced fatal cancer. The skin of the whole body is assigned a factor
of 0.01. Thus, when the equivalent doses for all organs and tissues are multiplied by their
respective tissue weighting factors and the products are summed, the result is an effective
dose of 1 millisievert.
If only the head is exposed to 1 mGy in radiation inspection, the organs and tissues in
the head, such as the thyroid, brain and salivary gland, are entirely exposed to radiation,
so equivalent doses are 1 mSv for all these organs and tissues. For organs and tissues
that are only partly present in the head, such as bone marrow and skin, equivalent doses
are obtained by multiplying by the ratios of their areas exposed to radiation (bone marrow:
10%; skin: 15%). When their equivalent doses are multiplied by their respective tissue
weighting factors and the products are summed, the result is an effective dose of 0.07
mSv.
(Related to p.35 of Vol. 1, "Relationship between Units")

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38
 Units of Radiation
Concepts of Doses: Physical Quantities, Protection
Quantities and Operational Quantities
Physical quantities: directly measurable
Radiation intensity (Bq: becquerels) Absorbed dose (Gy: grays)
Number of nuclei that decay per second Energy absorbed per 1 kg of substances
Radiation fluence (s‐1m‐2: fluence) Irradiation dose (for X‐rays and γ‐rays) (C/㎏)
Number of particles incident on a unit area Energy imparted to 1 kg of air

Units of Radiation
2.3
Defined based 
Doses indicating the effects of exposure on humans: not directly measurable
on physical 
quantity
Protection quantities Operational quantities

Ambient dose equivalent (Sv: sievert)
Equivalent dose (Sv: sievert) Directional dose equivalent (Sv: sievert)
indicates effects on individual human  Approximate value for protection 
organs and tissues quantity used in environmental 
≒ monitoring
Effective dose (Sv: sievert)
Personal dose equivalent (Sv: sievert)
indicates effects on the whole body by 
Approximate value for protection quantity 
combining effects on individual organs  used in personal monitoring
and tissues

To control radiation effects on the human body, it is necessary to take into account the
effects of exposure on multiple parts of the body and the effects of previous exposures.
The equivalent dose and the effective dose were invented for that purpose.
The equivalent dose is obtained by weighting effects on individual organs and tissues
according to the types of radiation.
The effective dose is obtained by converting the effects on individual tissues to a value
for the whole body. It is not the simple average of equivalent doses for individual organs
but the result of weighting according to differences in sensitivity to radiation among organs.
A factor for weighting radiation effects on individual organs is called the tissue weighting
factor.
Thus, protection quantities are calculated based on doses for organs and tissues in the
human body. They are therefore different from physical quantities such as the radiation
intensity (unit: becquerel) and absorbed dose (unit: gray) and cannot be measured directly
with instruments. To indicate effects on the human body, operational quantities are defined.
Some survey meters use sieverts in their readings. They do not directly measure a
protection quantity but show approximate values defined based on measured physical
quantities, i.e., operational quantities. Operational quantities include the ambient dose
equivalent used in environment monitoring and the personal dose equivalent used in
personal monitoring.
(p.40 of Vol. 1, "Dose Equivalents: Measurable Operational Quantities for Deriving Effective
Doses").
To provide conservative (on the safe side) estimates of protection quantities, operational
quantities are defined to assume slightly larger numerical values than the values of
protection quantities in most cases.

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39
 Units of Radiation Dose Equivalents:
Measurable Operational Quantities for Deriving Effective Doses

Dose equivalent = Absorbed dose at a reference point meeting 
requirements × Quality factor
To substitute for "effective doses" that cannot be actually measured, "operational 
quantities" that can be measured as nearly the same values as effective doses, such 
as an ambient dose equivalent and personal dose equivalent, are defined under 
certain conditions.
Units of Radiation
2.3

Ambient dose equivalent (1cm dose equivalent)
Dose equivalent occurring at a depth of 1cm from the surface 
of an ICRU sphere, which is 30 cm in diameter and simulates 
human tissue, placed in a field where radiation is coming from 
one direction; Ambient dose equivalent is used in  Gamma‐rays
measurements of ambient doses using survey meters, etc. ICRU sphere

Personal dose equivalent (1cm dose equivalent)
Dose equivalent at a depth of 1 cm at a designated point on the 
human body; Since measurement is conducted using an 
instrument worn on the body, exposure from all directions is 
evaluated while a self‐shielding effect is always at work.
⇒ Personal dose equivalents are always smaller than survey 
meter readings! ICRU slab

Operational quantities for estimating effective doses that cannot be actually measured
(p.39 of Vol. 1, "Concepts of Doses: Physical Quantities, Protection Quantities and
Operational Quantities") are defined, such as the ambient dose equivalent H*(d) (d is depth)
for evaluating ambient doses in a work environment, etc., the personal dose equivalent
Hp(d) for evaluating personal exposure, and the directional dose equivalent H' (d,α) (α is
the angle of incidence) as a quantity for use when there is a need to evaluate the depth
and directions of incidence as well, as in the case of exposure of the lens of the eye to
β-particles or soft X-rays.
Generally, both the ambient dose equivalent and the personal dose equivalent are also
called 1 cm dose equivalents because a depth of 1 cm is used in the case of exposure to
γ-rays.
However, while the ambient dose equivalent is measured using measuring instruments
that are less affected by directivity, such as a stationary ionization chamber and a survey
meter, the personal dose equivalent is measured using a small personal dosimeter worn on
the trunk of the body, so incidence from the back is evaluated while a self-shielding effect
is always at work. Therefore, in the case of exposures only from the front direction, such as
exposures in laboratories, the ambient dose equivalent and the personal dose equivalent
are equal, but in the case of exposures from all directions, personal dose equivalents
are always smaller than the values measured with a survey meter, etc. Calculation of an
effective dose for incidence from all directions is made under the condition of "rotational
irradiation" in which the human body is rotated, and the calculated value will be exactly the
same as the personal dose equivalent.

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 Units of Radiation
Difference between Values of Effective Dose 
and Dose Equivalent

Ambient dose equivalent
Effective dose/air kerma (Sv/Gy)

Units of Radiation
2.3
Radiation

The ambient dose equivalent 
Three months 
Effective dose  old measured with a survey meter is 
(rotation irradiation)
One year old defined as the dose equivalent at a 
Five years old depth of 1 cm from the surface of an 
Ten years old ICRU sphere that is 30 cm in diameter. 
Fifteen years 
old
The ambient dose equivalent is also 
Adult called 1 cm dose equivalent.
Extract from the 9th meeting of the Atomic
Energy Commission of Japan in 2012 (a report by
Akira Endo of JAEA)
Photon energy (MeV)

The ambient dose equivalent measured with a survey meter is set to always indicate a
larger value than the effective dose.
This is also the case for a personal dosimeter when measuring radiation incident only
from the front. However, in a setting where a personal dosimeter is worn on the body
and radiation sources are evenly distributed, measured value will be close to the value of
"effective dose" because of the self-shielding effect of the human back, etc.
The graph above shows differences between effective dose (including the self-shielding
effect of the back, etc. in the case of even irradiation by rotation) and ambient dose
equivalent to the energy of incident γ-rays. While the degree of self-shielding slightly varies
depending on differences in physique due to age, the value measured with a survey meter
for Cs-137 γ-rays at 662 keV is shown to be about 30% larger than the effective dose for
adults and the value measured with a personal dosimeter (personal dose equivalent).
(Related to p.40 of Vol. 1, "Dose Equivalents: Measurable Operational Quantities for
Deriving Effective Doses")

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 Units of Radiation Doses in Units of Sieverts
Survey meter

(i) Whole‐body 
exposure (iii) Local exposure
Effective dose Equivalent dose
Units of Radiation
2.3

Radioactive 
(iv) Survey meter materials
readings (radioactive iodine, 
radioactive cesium, etc.)

Personal dosimeter

(ii) Internal exposure
Committed effective
dose

Sievert is used as the unit for (i) radiation dose to the whole body (effective dose) (p.41 of
Vol. 1, "Difference between Values of Effective Dose and Dose Equivalent"), (ii) radiation
dose due to internal exposure (committed effective dose) (p.53 of Vol. 1, "Committed
Effective Doses"), and (iii) dose from local exposure, in which exposure to radiation is
limited to a certain location (equivalent dose). They are common in that they all take into
account the risks of cancer and hereditary effects on individuals or tissues exposed.
Sievert may also be used for (iv) the readings of survey meters. These values are
obtained by multiplying absorbed doses (gray) in the air by a certain factor for conversion to
sievert, and are indicated as larger approximations of effective doses received by humans.
They may be considered as approximations of effective doses in sieverts when the whole
body is evenly exposed to radiation (p.43 of Vol. 1, "Various Measuring Instruments").

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