Simulation Study of a Combined Pair Production – Compton Camera for In-Vivo Dosimetry During Therapeutic Proton Irradiation

Publikation: Beitrag in FachzeitschriftForschungsartikelBeigetragenBegutachtung

Beitragende

Abstract

Proton and light ion beams are applied to the therapeutic irradiation of cancer patients due to the favorable dose deposition of these particles in tissue. By means of accelerated ions, a high dose can be accurately deposited in the tumor while normal tissue is spared. Since minor changes in the patient's tissue along the beam path can compromise the success of the treatment, an in-vivo monitoring of the dose deposition is highly desired. Cameras detecting the prompt γ-rays emitted during therapy are under investigation for this purpose. Due to the energy spectrum of prompt γ-rays with a range between a few keV and several MeV, it is reasonable to consider the utilization of electron-positron pair production events to reconstruct the origin of these prompt photons. The combined use as a pair production and Compton camera is expected to increase its efficiency. We evaluated if a pair production camera could be suitable in this context by means of Monte-Carlo simulations. Modelling of the pair production events taking place in a prototype detector dedicated to Compton imaging were performed. We analyzed the efficiency of the detector system regarding pair production and Compton events. The most crucial property of this pair production camera is the angular resolution. The results of this work indicate that the spatial resolution of the considered detection system used as pair production camera is, for principal reasons, insufficient for an application to range assessment in particle therapy. Furthermore, the efficiency of the pair production camera under study is one order of magnitude lower than the efficiency of the setup applied to the detection of Compton events.

Details

OriginalspracheEnglisch
Aufsatznummer7225188
Seiten (von - bis)2023-2030
Seitenumfang8
FachzeitschriftIEEE Transactions on Nuclear Science
Jahrgang62
Ausgabenummer5
PublikationsstatusVeröffentlicht - 1 Okt. 2015
Peer-Review-StatusJa

Externe IDs

researchoutputwizard legacy.publication#67959
Ieee 10.1109/TNS.2015.2448235
Scopus 84957851913
ORCID /0000-0001-9023-3606/work/142252783

Schlagworte

Ziele für nachhaltige Entwicklung

Schlagwörter

  • Production, Photonics, Detectors, Cameras, Silicon, Positrons, Scattering