The reactor facility is home to the strongest gamma irradiator on the university campus, which is composed of a cesium source of considerable strength. This device is used for long term, high dose exposures of all sorts of different materials, such as electronics, liquid chemicals, and food stuffs. Gamma radiation is useful in these endeavors for radiation hardness testing and sterilization, as it will accomplish these tasks without making the material under examination radioactive itself, as neutron or ion beam radiations would. The irradiation chamber for this device is rather large and able to accommodate cabling or tubing that an irradiation target would require, such as cooling lines or power supply cables through special penetrations in the shield. Use of the device is allowed only by those who have undergone special training and certification or under the direct supervision of such a person.
