Comprehensive study on energy absorption buildup factors and exposure buildup factors for photon energy 0.015 to 15 MeV up to 40 mfp penetration depth for gel dosimeters

•EABF and EBF values of 16 gel dosimeters were computed using GP fitting method.•Water and PMMA equivalence was investigated using EABF.•Ratio of EABF of BANG1 to water and PMMA is close to unity above 1 MeV.•Photon kerma relative to air of PRESAGE shows a peak at 40 keV.

The gel dosimeter comprises of phantom, dosimetric material and three-D spatial dose distribution has advantages over one- and two-D dosimeters. Energy absorption buildup factor (EABF) and exposure buildup factor (EBF) values of sixteen gel dosimeters have been computed for photon energy 0.015 to 15 MeV up to 40 mfp (mean free path) penetration depths. Kerma of the gel dosimeters were computed for photon energy 1 keV to 20 MeV. The water and PMMA phantom equivalence of the gel dosimeters was evaluated using EABF, and large difference was noted below 1 MeV photon energy. This study should be useful for estimation of effective dose to the human organs and simulation of the dose for radiation therapy and various medical applications.