If a person receives an absorbed dose of 2 Gy from a radiation type with Q = 1, what is the dose equivalent H?

• A. 2 Sv
• B. 0.2 Sv
• C. 2 Gy
• D. 0.02 Sv

Answer: (A)

The key idea is that dose equivalent H equals the absorbed dose D multiplied by the radiation quality factor Q: H = D × Q. With D = 2 Gy and Q = 1, the calculation is 2 Gy × 1 = 2 Sv. Since Q is 1 for this radiation type, the numerical value in sieverts matches the absorbed dose in grays. For other radiation types with higher Q, the same absorbed dose would yield a larger dose equivalent (for example, Q ≈ 20 would give about 40 Sv for 2 Gy).