Reference Products for environment and trade

The world's larges supplier of matrix reference materials, the IAEA provides more than 90 different reference materials (RMs) to laboratories world-wide to assist them in the quality of the results they obtain by nuclear analytical techniques.

For all queries regarding reference materials, please go to Reference Material Contact Point. The IAEA established its analytical quality control services in the early 1960s to support Member State laboratories using nuclear analytical techniques. Initial activities focussed on the preparation of environmental Reference Materials (RMs) containing anthropogenic radionuclides.

These RMs were characterized for their radionuclide content through laboratory intercomparisons (IC) involving a core group of some 10 to 20 specialist laboratories. The success of these early exercises led the Agency to extend its activities to encompass both terrestrial and marine RMs containing primordial radionuclides, stable isotopes and trace elements.

Today, the Agency distributes more than 90 reference materials and maintains a customer base of about 3000 members. Laboratory Reference Product activities are coordinated by two IAEA laboratories:

• Physics, Chemistry and Instrumentation Laboratory, Seibersdorf, Austria
• Marine Environment Laboratory, Monaco
• Major Reference Product activities today
• Laboratory intercomparisons and proficiency tests
• Production and distribution of reference materials (RMs)
• Development and publication of analytical methods
• Support and coordination of laboratory networks
• Training in analytical procedures and laboratory quality management

Quality LevelExplanation of Terms

• Authoritative: All information in the resource has been verified by authorities as indicated.
• Quality-checked: All information in the resource has been quality-checked as indicated.
• Not quality-checked: Although the information in the resource may come from peer-reviewed journals or other high-quality sources, it has not undergone subsequent quality checking before incorporation in the resource.

: Quality-checked by IAEA Secretariat
CompletenessExplanation of Terms

• Comprehensive:The resource includes all items in the category for which the resource was created.
• Selective: The resource includes only selected items in the category for which the resource was created, with the process or basis for the selection as indicated.

: Comprehensive
Update FrequencyExplanation of Terms

• Updated continually: A conscientious effort is made to add new information immediately and keep the resource up-to-date on a day-by-day basis.
• Updated periodically: The resource is updated on a schedule. Common values are monthly, quarterly, annually or biennially, but others are also used.
• Updated occasionally: The resource is updated now and then, but not on a schedule.
• Static: The resource is a one-off creation with no plans for updates, or a resource that was updated in the past but has now been frozen with no new input planned.

: Continually