0000000001004694
AUTHOR
L Lazzeri
Gel dosimeters for medical physics applications
Gel dosimeters for three-dimensional mapping of radiotherapy doses were introduced at Yale University in the mid-1980’s. Soon after, R&D in this field also started in Italy. Early work was done at the Istituto Superiore di Sanità, and at the Universities of Pisa and Milan. Several institutes now collaborate on this topic with support from the Italian Ministry for University and Research (MIUR) through Grant PRIN SNALEM2010 “Development and application of new materials for ionizing radiation dosimetry”. This presentation describes this research, which aims at developing new formulations of hydrogel matrices with improved characteristics of stability, sensitivity and spatial resolution co…
Agarose and PVA Fricke gel dosimeters exposed to clinical photons beams: Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Relaxometry and Imaging
Fricke Xylenol Gel (FXG) dosimetric system is based on the radiation induced oxidation of ferrous (Fe2+) to ferric (Fe3+) ions. The application of Fricke gels for ionizing radiation dosimetry is continuously increasing worldwide due to their many favorable properties. However, one of their shortcomings is that ferrous and ferric ions diffuse in the gel matrix. To maintain the spatial integrity of the dose distribution, Fricke gels must be undergoing measurement within a few hours of their irradiation, so that ferric ions remain close to their point of production. Thus, the spatial integrity of the dose distribution in the Fricke gel is maintained. The gel matrix also contributes to the oxid…
The impact of self-oxidation on the dosimetric performance of ferrous-sulfate/xylenol-orange gels
Since their introduction in the 1980’s, most of the research on ferrous-sulfate gel dosimeters has aimed at minimizing the ferric ion diffusion phenomena that blur the 3D distribution of the signal. However, equally important are the spontaneous oxidation effects, which alter the sensitivity of the gels over time. In some gels, this effect is very pronounced and must be accounted for even when production, calibration and use of the gels are separated by just a few days. In other cases, the effect is much milder, but should still be properly accounted for when gels are used over a long period a time, such as in the proposed monitoring of adaptive radiotherapy treatments. Our work examined an…