Effect of super(7)Li (45 MeV) ions on spinach leaves studied by thermoluminescence technique

In the present work, we have studied the effect of different fluences of super(7)Li (45 MeV) (10 super(4)-5x10 super(7) particles/cm super(2)) on the photosynthetic apparatus of spinach (Spinacia oleracia L.) leaves using the thermoluminescence (TL) technique. Fitting of the recorded TL glow curves using the general order kinetics theory for the control sample showed the presence of the standard TL bands i.e. A(I), D(II), Q(III), B(IV) and C(V) at around -20 degree C, -5 degree C, 10 degree C, 30 degree C and 50 degree C respectively. The irradiation with fluence of 10 super(4) particles/cm super(2) resulted in the induction of a new TL band at around 16 degree C along with the other bands, while the sample irradiated with 10 super(5) particles/cm super(2) showed a splitting of the B band into its components B sub(1) (20 degree C) and B sub(2) (30 degree C) in addition to the new band. On irradiation with 5x10 super(7) particles /cm super(2), an apparent shift of all the bands towards the lower temperature side was observed. These findings suggest that exposure to super(7)Li (45 MeV) ions results in an alteration of the characteristic trap distribution which represents the energy levels of the various electron transport components within the photosynthetic apparatus.