Abstract
The Importance of Accredited Procedures for Radiation Testing Laboratories According to ISO/IEC 17025
Peter Beck1
1 Seibersdorf Laboratories, Austria
Abstract
ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation is aimed at laboratories with the incentive to develop, maintain and continuously improve their quality through a quality management system [1]. The focus of the ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation is on the reliability and quality of test methods. Accreditation according to ISO/IEC 17025 demonstrates the integrity and the professionalism of a contract laboratory. It further proofs the laboratories’ ability to consistently produce reliable and trustworthy results; the key to customer satisfaction and acceptance of the contract laboratory as an independent testing body.
Seibersdorf Laboratories holds and maintains numerous ISO/IEC 17025 accredited procedures for its various test facilities. One facility that is of particular interest for the radiation hardness assurance community is the TEC-Laboratory, one of Seibersdorf Laboratories’ Co-60 facilities dedicated entirely to total ionizing dose (TID) testing of electronic components and systems.
The abbreviation TEC stands for Testing of Electronic Components. The testing procedures of the TEC-Laboratory are fully compliant with the ISO/IEC 17025 standard of test laboratories. Further, the procedures of the TEC-Laboratory comply with ESCC Basic Specification No. 22900 [2] and Steady-State Total Dose Irradiation Procedure of MIL-STD-750 [3]. For maintaining its accreditation, the TEC-Laboratory is regularly audited by an independent governmental body certified for accreditation of test laboratories – the Accreditation Austria. The Accreditation Austria is a full member of the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation ILAC and a signatory of the MRA for “Testing, Calibration and Inspection”, guaranteeing the acceptance of accreditation worldwide. As part of its accreditation, the TEC-Laboratory must also participate in relevant comparative qualification tests, e.g. interlaboratory comparisons, to demonstrate its technical competence. As a results of its accreditation, the TEC-Laboratory is allowed to issue test reports showing the accreditation body’s and the ILAC symbol – a sign of excellent quality assurance.
In this talk I will present and discuss the key aspects of accreditation of testing laboratories to ISO/IEC 17025. As an example, I will show the process of gaining and maintaining accreditation of the TEC Laboratory, Seibersdorf Laboratories’ Co-60 test facility of TID testing of electronic components and system. Important aspects such as Co-60 photon field characterization and the effect of backscattering, e.g. from the concrete walls by means of measurements and Monte Carlo methods will be investigated [4][5]. Further, preliminary results from the latest interlaboratory measurements will be provided. All these examples will highlight the importance of accreditation to ISO/IEC 17025 of test facilities to the end user, to receive accurate, reliable and traceable test results.
References
[1] EN ISO/IEC 17025:2017, General requirements for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories, 2018
[2] European Space Component Coordination, Total Dose Steady-State Irradiation Test Method, ESCC Basic Specification No.22900, escies.org, 2016
[3] MIL-STD-750-F Test Method Standard, Method 1019.5, Steady-State Total Dose Irradiation Procedure, Department of Defense, 2016
[4] T.T. Bohlen, et. Al., The FLUKA Code: Developments and Challenges for High Energy and Medical Applications, Nuclear Data Sheets 120, 211-214, 2014
[5] A. Ferrari, et. Al., FLUKA: a multi-particle transport code, CERN-2005-10 (2005), INFN/TC_05/11, SLAC-R-773