Collection efficiency of a monitor parallel plate ionization chamber for pencil beam scanning proton therapy

The collection efficiency of monitor parallel plate ionization chambers is the main uncertainty in the beam control of pencil beam scanning systems.Existing calculation methods for collection efficiency in photon or passive scattering proton systems have not considered the characteristics of non-uniform charge density in pencil beam scanning systems.In this study,Boag’s theory was applied to a proton pencil beam scanning system.The transverse distribution of charge density in the ionization chamber was considered to be a Gaussian function and an analytical solution was derived to calculate collection efficiency in the beam spot area.This calculation method is called the integral method and it was used to investigate the effects of beam parameters on collection efficiency.It was determined that collection efficiency is positively correlated with applied voltage,beam size,and beam energy,but negatively correlated with beam current intensity.Additionally,it was confirmed that collection efficiency is improved when the air filling the monitor parallel plate ionization chamber is replaced with nitrogen.

Ionization Chamber Dosimetry for Conventional and Laser-Driven Clinical Hadron Beams

The practice of using the direct ionization radiation (electrons, protons, antiprotons, pions, ions, etc) or of the indirect ionization radiation (photons, neutrons, etc) in economy and social life has led to the introduction of the absorbed dose magnitude (ICRU 1953) defined as the energy absorbed per mass unit of the irradiated substance. This is a fundamental magnitude valid for any type of ionizing radiation, any irradiated material and any radiation energy. In case of clinical hadron beams generated by conventional accelerators or those controlled by lasers, IAEA TRS 398 recommends the absorbed dose to water. This may be determined employing the calorimeter method with water or graphite, chemical method, fluence based measurements as Faraday cups or activation measurements, and the ionization chamber method. In this paper the selected method was the thimble air filled ionization chamber method for determination of absorbed dose to water.

Simulation method for measurement of the cross-section of the^(14)N(n,a)^(11)B reaction using a gridded ionization chamber

A simulation method for measurement of the cross-section of the^(14)N(n,a)^(11)B reaction with gas and solid samples using a gridded ionization chamber(GIC)has been established.Using the simulation,the experimental spectra of both^(14)N(n,a)^(11)B events and background from other reactions can be predicted,and the experimental scheme can be optimized.According to the simulation results,the optimal experimental parameters,including the pressure of the working gas and the compositions of the working gas and the sample,can be determined.In addition,the simulation results can be used to determine the valid event area and calculate the detection efficiency for valid events.A measurement of the cross-sections of the^(14)N(n,a)^(11)B reaction at E_(n)=4.25,4.50,4.75,5.00,5.25,and 5.50 MeV,based on the 4.5-MV Van de Graff accelerator at Peking University(PKU)using a GIC as the detector for the outgoing a particles,has been performed.The good agreement of the spectra from the simulation and experiment demonstrated the universality of this simulation method,which can be used to accurately measure neutroninduced light-charged particle emission reactions.

A SPHERICAL GRAPHITE IONIZATION CHAMBER

This paper describes an exposure ratemeter made of graphite ion chamber. The sensitive volume is 14 cm^3. The wall is 5 mm in thickness. The DC amplifier with a high input impedance consists of several stage differential amplifications, and is used for measurement of the ionization currents. Six ranges are able to cover a wide range of exposure rates. The full scale of the maximum range is 75 C/(kg·h). The lowest measurable limit is 5 mC/(kg·h). The zero drift within 8 h is less than 5% of each full scale. This instrument provides with a relatively convenient method for the measurement. The main advantages of the ionization chamber over other methods lie in rapidity and accuracy, and the change in radiation field with time can be indicated directly. It is particularly successful in acting as a routine dosimeter under high exposure rates.

LET Monitoring Using Liquid Ionization Chambers

Relative biological effectiveness (RBE) is an important quantity in planning particle beam cancer therapy. In general, the RBE describes the biological effectiveness of a given primary beam with respect to a reference photon irradiation. RBE varies not only for different primary beams but also with depth in the target for a given beam modality. It is not a quantity that easily lends itself to measurements or computation as it depends on many biological and physical quantities. Numerous experiments in vitro using various cell lines and irradiation modalities have shown that a general relationship between RBE and the physical quantity Linear Energy Transfer (LET) exists. Several groups have proposed including LET in the radiation therapy treatment planning instead of the more complicated and elusive RBE. It has been shown that LET is an important quantity to consider in treating radio-resistant tumors. The concept of LET painting has been proposed with the goal of improving tumor control probability (TCP) for hypoxic tumors by focusing high LET radiation on the hypoxic region of the tumor while restricting the surrounding normal tissue to low LET radiation. In order to properly incorporate LET in clinical treatment, it is important to be able to experimentally measure and verify LET distribution. We propose a novel method for measuring LET using a dual chamber methodology exploiting the difference in the observed recombination between air filled ionization chambers (IC) and liquid filled ionization chambers (LIC). The resulting difference in the measured signals will be used to directly extract the relative LET of an actual treatment beam in real time. This paper describes our initial studies of this method, presents preliminary results, and discusses further improvements toward a practical real-time LET measuring device.

Saturation characteristics of low voltage ionization chamber filled with argon or xenon

Argon and xenon are both attractive working gas for low voltage ionization chamber(LVIC),which is a promising candidate for ITER X-ray detectors.In this work,the performances of Arfilling LVIC(Ar-LVIC)and Xe-filling LVIC(Xe-LVIC)as well as the impacts of operation parameters were investigated.Saturation curves of Ar-LVIC and Xe-LVIC with pressure from 0.4 to 1.2 bar were measured with a tungsten X-ray source.The minimum voltage of saturation region(V_(min))of Ar-LVIC and Xe-LVIC,the relationship between V_(min)and saturation current,the ideal operating voltage in ITER and impacts of pressure on saturation current were studied.It was found that Ar-LVIC had smaller V_(min)and saturation currents which decreased with the drop of pressure from 1.2 to 0.4 bar;Xe-LVIC had larger V_(min)and saturation currents which did not obviously decrease with the same pressure drop.It is envisaged that ITER can take advantage of the larger saturation current and lower pressure of Xe-LVIC in the non-nuclear operation phase,and flexibility of pressure and low sensitivity to neutron/gamma radiation of Ar-LVIC in the nuclear operation phase.

Absorbed Dose to Water Rate in a Cyberknife VSI System Reference Field Using Ionization Chambers and Gafchromic Films

This work investigated the absorbed dose to water rate under reference conditions in a Cyberknife VSI system using radiochromic films EBT3 and MD-V3 and three ionization chambers: an Exradin A12 and two FC65P Welhöfer Scanditronix with different serial numbers. The correction factor,, was studied using a Varian iX linac and the Cyberknife system. The measurements in the Varian iX were performed in a 10 × 10 cm2 field, 10 cm depth in liquid water at 90 cm and 70 cm SSD and in a 5.4 × 5.4 cm2 field, 10 cm depth at 70 cm SSD to simulate the Cyberknife conditions. In the Cyberknife system, measurements were performed using ionization chambers and both film types at 70 cm SSD and 10 cm depth in its 6 cm diameter reference field. The results indicate that ?is independent of the dosimeters and the evaluation methods. Maximum differences of 0.22% - 0.55% (combined uncertainties of 1.22% - 1.98%, k = 1) are obtained on ?using Varian iX, whereas discrepancies of 2.08% - 2.09% (combined uncertainties of 1.87% - 2.13%, k = 1) are observed using the Cyberknife system. Given the agreement between detectors and the combined standard uncertainties, the data from Varian iX could be considered the most accurate and consequently a weighted average factor of 0.902 ± 0.006 could be used for the Cyberknife VSI system reference field. Within measurement uncertainties, the absorbed dose rate measured in the Cyberknife VSI system reference field was found to be independent of the dosimeters used. These results suggest that the absorbed dose measured at a point within a given field size should be the same, regardless the dosimeter used, if their dosimetric characteristics are well known. This highlighted the importance of performing dosimetry by controlling all parameters that could affect the dosimeter response. One can conclude that radiochromic film dosimetry can be considered as an appropriate alternative for measuring absorbed dose to water rate.

Use of a 2-Dimensional Ionization Chamber Array to Measure Head Leakage of a Varian Truebeam^®Linear Accelerator

The purpose of this work is to evaluate the use of a two-dimensional (2D) planar ion chamber array to characterize leakage radiation from the head of the linear accelerator. Ion chamber arrays provide a benefit over a singular ion chamber measurement as they allow for the measurement of a larger area in order to isolate the point of maximum leakage dose and the small size of each individual ion chamber minimizes volume-averaging effects. A Varian Truebeam® undergoing acceptance testing was used for all measurements. The gantry was wrapped in Portal Pack for Localization (PPL) radiographic film in order to isolate the location of maximum leakage. A calibration curve was developed and used to determine dose-to-film. An Ion Chamber Profiler (IC Profiler™) manufactured by Sun Nuclear Corporation was used to confirm measurements by the PPL film. All measurements were normalized to leakage at 100 cm from the target relative to the central axis. Three points were investigated with the IC Profiler, including the top of the gantry, the Varian logo, and the side of the gantry. For the three locations, respectively, the PPL film and the IC profiler were measured 0.142% and 0.131%, 0.036% and 0.030%, and 0.014% and 0.019%. The good agreement between the PPL film and the IC Profiler provides confidence in the use of a more efficient and accurate ion chamber array for head leakage measurements.

LARGE VOLUME IONIZATION CHAMBER USED AS LABORATORY REFERENCE FOR LOW ENERGY X－RAY MEASUREMENT

A large volume spherical ionization chamber of 195 mm diameter and 0.36 mg/cm2wall thickness made from conducting carbon-fibre epoxy composite material has been developed. The mechanical intensity of the chamber is satisfactory for a good longterm volume stability. Owing to its large volume and thin wall, the chamber is sensitive to low energy photon beams and has excellent energy-response characteristics. This ionization chamber is suitable not only for a laboratory reference but also for measurement of low energy photon beam exposure rates at protection-level.

Measuring^(222)Rn in aquatic environment via Pulsed Ionization Chamber Radon Detector

Radon(Rn)is a naturally occurring radioactive inert gas in nature,and^(222)Rn has been routinely used as a powerful tracer in various aquatic environmental research on timescales of hours to days,such as submarine groundwater discharge.Here we developed a new approach to measure^(222)Rn in discrete water samples with a wide range of^(222)Rn concentrations using a Pulsed Ionization Chamber(PIC)Radon Detector.The sensitivity of the new PIC system is evaluated at 6.06 counts per minute for 1 Bq/L when a 500 mL water sample volume is used.A robust logarithmic correlation between sample volumes,ranging from 250 mL to 5000 mL,and system sensitivity obtained in this study strongly suggests that this approach is suitable for measuring radon concentration levels in various natural waters.Compared to the currently available methods for measuring radon in grab samples,the PIC system is cheaper,easier to operate and does not require extra accessories(e.g.,drying tubes etc.)to maintain stable measurements throughout the counting procedure.

Determination of Bragg Peak Location for Heavy Ion Beam by Ionization Chambers

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Improvement of a New Gas Ionization Chamber

In order to identify heavier elements, we have developed a new longitudinal field gas ionization chamber (IC)with an angle of 30° of plate (as shown in Fig.1). The IC is operated in flowing iso-butane gas at a pressure of 10kPa. After testing by using a 3- component α particle source and comparing with the old longitudinal

An online monitor ionization chamber used in particle therapy

The clinical trials of tumor therapy using heavy ions beam 12C are now in progress at Institute of Modern Physics in Lanzhou. In order to achieve the precise radiotherapy with the high energy 12C beam in active pencil beam scanning mode, we have developed an ionization chamber(IC) as an online monitor for beam intensity and also a dosimeter after calibration. Through the choosing of working gas and voltage, optimizing of the electrics and the read-out system, calibrating the linearity, the detector system provide us one of the simple and highly reliable way to monitoring the beam during the active pencil beam scanning treatments. The measurement results of this detector system show that it could work well under the condition of high energy 12C beam in active pencil beam scanning mode.

低水平γ射线空气比释动能高气压电离室研制

受限于探测器灵敏度,现有手段在防护水平和环境水平γ射线参考辐射空气比释动能的中、下段范围,即0.1~100μGy/h剂量率,量值复现的不确定度较大,无法满足科研、环境监测等发展的需求。因此,为了解决上述问题,基于理论分析与蒙卡模拟优化,开展专用于低水平γ射线参考辐射测量的高气压型标准电离室的优化设计并形成KAS型样机。通过研制的KAS电离室标准与德国PTW公司生产的空腔型标准电离室的测量结果及不确定分析结果的比对表明,利用新研制的KAS测量标准在保证测量准确度的同时能够显著降低低水平空气比释动能量值复现的不确定度,使得0.5μGy/h~1 mGy/h的γ射线空气比释动能率的不确定度降低至1.3%(k=2)。

On the Perturbation Correction Factor <i>p_cav</i>of the Markus Parallel-Plate Ion Chamber in Clinical Electron Beams

Purpose: All present dosimetry protocols recommend well-guarded parallelplate ion chambers for electron dosimetry. For the guard-less Markus chamber, an energy dependent fluence perturbation correction pcav is given. This perturbation correction was experimentally determined by van der Plaetsen by comparison of the read-out of a Markus and a NACP chamber, which was assumed to be “perturbation-free”. Aim of the present study is a Monte Carlo based reiteration of this experiment. Methods: Detailed models of four parallel-plate chambers (Roos, Markus, NACP and Advanced Markus) were designed using the Monte Carlo code EGSnrc and placed in a water phantom. For all chambers, the dose to the active volume filled with low density water was calculated for 13 clinical electron spectra (E0 = 6 - 21 MeV) and three energies of an Electra linear accelerator at the depth of maximum and at the reference depth under reference conditions. In all cases, the chamber’s reference point was positioned at the depth of measurement. Moreover, the dose to water DW was calculated in a small water voxel positioned at the same depth. Results: The calculated dose ratio DNACP/DMarkus, which according to van der Plaetsen reflects the fluence perturbation correction of the Markus chamber, deviates less from unity than the values given by van der Plaetsen, but exhibits similar energy dependence. The same holds for the dose ratios of the other well-guarded chambers. But, in comparison to water, the Markus chamber reveals the smallest overall perturbation correction which is nearly energy independent at both investigated depths. Conclusion: The simulations principally confirm the energy dependence of the dose ratio DNACP/DMarkus as published by van der Plaetsen. But, as shown by our simulations of the ratio DW/DMarkus, the conclusion drawn in all dosimetry protocols is questionable: in contrast to all well-guarded chambers, the guard-less Markus chamber reveals the smallest overall perturbation correction and also the smallest energy dependence.

非电离室型探测器在深度剂量扫描中的应用研究

为研究非电离室型探测器在深度剂量分布扫描中的响应特性,通过采用平板电离室、半导体和宝石探测器对医用光子束和电子束深度剂量分布进行扫描,并以平板电离室作为参考,分析比较半导体和宝石探测器在最大剂量深度、射线质等参数来探究其在深度剂量上的性能。结果表明:医用光子束下除两支探测器外,其余探测器获得的射线质与参考值的最大相对偏差为-0.67%,符合TRS-398报告高能光子束允许的不确定度1.0%,电子束<10 MeV时,各能量下非电离室型探测器获得的射线质与参考值的平均相对偏差最小为1.91%,能量≥10 MeV时,平均相对偏差最大为1.01%,除两支探测器外,其余探测器的相对偏差最大为-1.15%,符合TRS-398报告高能电子束允许的不确定度1.2%。P型半导体探测器获得的射线质与参考值的相对偏差在±0.85%内,比E型半导体探测器的相对偏差范围±0.67%大。结论:非电离室型探测器在高能光子束下影响较小,电子束<10 MeV时影响较大,能量≥10 MeV时影响较小,且尽量选择E型半导体探测器,并考虑探测器外壳材质。

水吸收剂量国际校准协议TRS-398^(V7)使用指南

为满足外照射治疗束水吸收剂量校准需求,结合国际原子能机构(IAEA)2024年发布的TRS-398的第7版内容,给出优化的水吸收剂量校准流程及建议。在参考测量条件方面,给出多种外照射治疗束测量注意事项及电离室适用范围;在电离室测量方面,给出各个修正项的测量方法及射线质转换因子表;在校准不确定度方面,比较更新前后各个影响量的变化。结果表明:采用IBA FC65-G电离室校准高能光子束、高能电子束、质子束和轻离子束水吸收剂量值较早期版本的相对偏差依次为-0.4%、0.5%、-1.7%和-1.3%,相对标准不确定度依次为1.0%、1.1%、1.7%和2.6%。本指南结合国内放疗剂量校准水平和实践给出TRS-398优化的校准实践,以便高效准确地开展绝对剂量校准工作。

粒子源水吸收剂量绝对测量装置内部电场模拟

拟研制125I粒子源水吸收剂量绝对测量电离室,通过Maxwell软件建立电离室内部模型,模拟得出电离室无保护极、不同保护极环宽度,不同绝缘环宽度、不同栅极个数、不同栅极形状和不同栅极厚度下的电场强度分布,并进行了定性和定量的分析。结果表明:绝缘环宽度的增加会使收集极边缘处的边缘效应增强,应尽量使绝缘环宽度减小;在设计电离室时,应当使保护极宽度和收集极半径比值不低于2。当栅极个数为15个时,电场强度的变化幅度可减少为1%左右,表明通过增加栅极个数能有效改善电场的均匀性。相较于栅极截面为圆形和三角形,当栅极截面为矩形时,电场强度的变化幅度较小。栅极厚度越大,栅极边缘处的边缘效应越严重,应尽量减少栅极厚度。本次研究结果将为后续粒子源水吸收剂量绝对测量标准装置的优化设计提供支撑。

用于小型AMS的类布拉格探测器研制

为了解决小型AMS系统中,使用现有的气体电离室探测低能量重粒子时,脉冲信号高度与探测器本底噪声重合较多、难以有效区分的问题,研制了一种新型的类布拉格气体电离室。在一定的约化场强下,这种电离室能够使电子在阳极附近区域发生电子倍增,从而使脉冲信号高度上升,以达到与探测器本底噪声分开的目的。利用5.8 MeV的α粒子进行实验,通过调节α粒子进入探测器的能量,并在不同气体压力、阳极电压(约化场强E/P)的条件下对探测器性能进行系统调试。经过模拟计算和系统调试,得出以下结论:该探测器可用于测量粒子的能谱,能量分辨率可达到2.98%。当阳极前1 mm处的约化场强E/P为5 V·mm^(-1)·hPa^(-1)时,脉冲信号的增益大约为7倍。

环境自动监测站固定式辐射监测仪性能测试与评价

参考计量技术规范《固定式环境γ辐射空气比释动能(率)仪现场校准规范》(JJF 1733—2018),对辐射环境空气自动监测站78台高气压电离室开展辐射特性测试。现场校准方面,仅88%的电离室满足1±0.2的响应范围要求;78台电离室的重复性均不超过1%,响应的非线性均不超过6.5%,符合规范要求。针对电离室开展辐射性能测试,发现电离室在9.0×10^(-2)~1.0×10^(9)μGy/h范围内的响应均不超过1±0.2;电离室对164 keV以上的光子的能量响应趋于1.0,对60 keV以下的光子无响应能力,而当光子能量在60~164 keV范围内时,响应曲线会因γ光子与电离室内部惰性气体的光电效应出现“鼓包”;电离室不具备对核临界事故脉冲辐射的监测与警示能力;电离室能够在2 s内给出测量范围内的准确示值,但在分段电压的交界处,响应时间会延长至180~360 s;电离室的响应受环境温度、湿度变化的影响大小不足±0.01,表明电离室的环境适应性优良。