A simulation study investigating a Cherenkov material for use with the prompt gamma range verification in proton therapy.

A simulation study investigating a Cherenkov material for use with the prompt gamma range verification in proton therapy. J Xray Sci Technol. 2016 May 2; Authors: Lau A, Ahmad S, Chen Y Abstract In vivo range verification methods will reveal information about the penetration depth into a patient for an incident proton beam. The prompt gamma (PG) method is a promising in vivo technique that has been shown to yield this range information by measuring the escaping MeV photons given a suitable detector system. The majority of current simulations investigating PG detectors utilize common scintillating materials ideal for photons within a low neutron background radiation field using complex geometries or novel designs. In this work we simulate a minimal detector system using a material ideal for MeV photon detection in the presence of a significant neutron field based on the Cherenkov phenomenon. The response of this selected material was qualified for the escaping particles commonly found in proton therapy applications and the feasibility of using the PG technique for this detector material was studied. Our simulations found that the majority of the range information can be determined by detecting photons emitted with a timing window less than ∼50 ns after the interaction of the proton beam with the water phantom and with an energy threshold focusing on the energy range of the de-excitation of 16O photons (∼6 MeV). The Cherenkov m...
Source: Journal of X-Ray Science and Technology - Category: Radiology Tags: J Xray Sci Technol Source Type: research