F Therriault-Proulx1, Z Wen1, G Ibbott1, S Beddar1. 1. Department of Radiation Physics, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, 1515 Holcombe Blvd., Unit 1420, Houston, TX, USA.
Abstract
PURPOSE: To characterize the response of plastic scintillation detectors (PSDs) to high-energy photon radiation as a function of magnetic field strength. MATERIALS AND METHODS: PSDs were placed inside a plastic phantom held at the center point between 2 magnets and irradiated using a 6-MV photon beam from a linear accelerator. The magnetic field was varied from 0 T to 1.5 T by 0.3-T increments. The light emission and stem-effect-corrected response as a function of magnetic field strength were obtained for both a commercial PSD (Exradin W1, Standard Imaging) and an in-house hyperspectral PSD. Spectral signatures were obtained for the in-house PSD, and light emission from a bare fiber was also measured. RESULTS: Light emission increased as magnetic field strength increased for all detectors tested. The tested PSDs exhibited an increase in light intensity of 10% to 20%, mostly owing to the increase in Cerenkov light produced within and transmitted along the optical fiber. When corrected for stem effects, the increase in PSD response went down to 2.4% for both detectors. This most likely represents the change in the inherent dose deposition within the phantom. CONCLUSION: PSDs with a suitable stem-effect removal approach were less dependent on magnetic field strength and had better water equivalence than did ion chambers tested in previous studies. PSDs therefore show great promise for use in both quality assurance and in-vivo dosimetry applications in a magnetic field environment.
PURPOSE: To characterize the response of plastic scintillation detectors (PSDs) to high-energy photon radiation as a function of magnetic field strength. MATERIALS AND METHODS: PSDs were placed inside a plastic phantom held at the center point between 2 magnets and irradiated using a 6-MV photon beam from a linear accelerator. The magnetic field was varied from 0 T to 1.5 T by 0.3-T increments. The light emission and stem-effect-corrected response as a function of magnetic field strength were obtained for both a commercial PSD (Exradin W1, Standard Imaging) and an in-house hyperspectral PSD. Spectral signatures were obtained for the in-house PSD, and light emission from a bare fiber was also measured. RESULTS: Light emission increased as magnetic field strength increased for all detectors tested. The tested PSDs exhibited an increase in light intensity of 10% to 20%, mostly owing to the increase in Cerenkov light produced within and transmitted along the optical fiber. When corrected for stem effects, the increase in PSD response went down to 2.4% for both detectors. This most likely represents the change in the inherent dose deposition within the phantom. CONCLUSION: PSDs with a suitable stem-effect removal approach were less dependent on magnetic field strength and had better water equivalence than did ion chambers tested in previous studies. PSDs therefore show great promise for use in both quality assurance and in-vivo dosimetry applications in a magnetic field environment.
Authors: David M Klein; Ramesh C Tailor; Louis Archambault; Lilie Wang; Francois Therriault-Proulx; A Sam Beddar Journal: Med Phys Date: 2010-10 Impact factor: 4.071
Authors: I Meijsing; B W Raaymakers; A J E Raaijmakers; J G M Kok; L Hogeweg; B Liu; J J W Lagendijk Journal: Phys Med Biol Date: 2009-04-23 Impact factor: 3.609