Clinical Radiation Generators

Clinical Radiation Generators
R.Sathish Kumar
Physicist
Division of RT
DNSH-New Delhi
Radiation Generators
1. Kilovoltage Units
2. Van de Graaff Generator
3. Linear Accelerator
4. Betatron
5. Microtron
6. Cyclotron
7. Machine Using Radionuclides
8. Heavy Particle Beams
Kilovoltage Units
• Up to above 1950
• X-rays generated at voltages up to 300 kVps
• Still some use in the present era, treatment of superficial
skin lesions
• Kilovoltage Therapy
– Grenz-Ray Therapy
– Contact Therapy
– Superficial Therapy
– Orthovoltage Therapy or Deep Therapy
– Supervoltage Therapy
KV Unit cont…
Kilovoltage Therapy Units (Non-
Isocentric)
Contact therapy ( 50 kV):
 – Often short SSD, high dose rate machines with small applicator sizes
 – HVL < 2mm Al, with sharp dose fall-off for skin irradiation
Superficial therapy: (50-150kV):
 – SSD’s typically up to 20 cm
 – Energy upto (150kV)
Orthovoltage therapy (150-500kV):
 – Typical energies are 250 and 300 kV with SSD’s up to 50cm

 – HVL up to 4mm Cu
All beam qualities have maximum dose at or close to the surface and use fixed
applicator treatment. 250 kVp is the “gold standard” for radiobiology.
Megavoltage Therapy
• X-ray beams of energy > 1 MV
• Accelerators or γ ( Gamma) ray produced by radionuclides
• Examples of clinical megavoltage machines
– Van de Graaff generator
– Linear accelerator
– Betatron
– Microtron
– Teletherapy γ (Gamma) ray units (e.g. cobalt-60)
2-Van de Graaff Generator
• Electrostatic accelerator
• Energy of x-rays: 2 MV
(typical), up to 10 MV
• Limitation:
– FS size
– high-voltage insulation
• No longer produced
commercially
– Technically better
machine (e.g. Co-60 units
& linear accelerators)
3-Linear Accelerator
• Use high frequency electromagnetic waves to acelerate charged
particles (e.g. electrons) to high energies through a linear tube
• High-energy electron beam – treating superficial tumors
• X-rays – treating deep-seated tumors
Types of EM wave
1. Traveling EM wave (Traveling Wave Guide )
• Required a terminating (“dummy”) load to absorb the residual
power at the end of the structure
• Prevent backward reflection wave
Fig 4.5. A block diagram of typical medical linear
accelerator
2. Standing EM wave
• Combination of forward and reverse traveling waves

• More efficiency
– Axial beam transport cavities and the side cavities can be
independently optimized
• More expensive
– the structure prevent reflections from reaching the power
source
The Magnetron
• A device that produces microwaves
• Functions as a high-power oscillator
• Peak power output:
• 2 MW (for low-energy linacs, 6MV or less)
5 MW (for higher-energy linacs, mostly use klystrons)
The Klystron
approx 20 MW
peak power
 Not a generator of microwaves
 Microwave amplifier
– Needs to be driven by a low-power microwave oscillator
The Linac X-Ray Beam
Production of x-rays
 Electrons are incident on a target of a high-Z material (e.g.
tungsten)
 Bremsstrahlung interactions
 Electrons energy is converted into a spectrum of x-rays energies
 Max energy of x-rays = energy of incident energy of electrons
 Average photon energy = approx 1/3 of max energy of x-rays
Designation of energy of electron beam and x-rays
 Electron beam - MeV (million electron volts, monoenergetic)
 X-ray beam – MV (megavolts, voltage across an x-ray tube,
hetergeneous in energy)
Lead or tungsten
Lead or tungsten
target
Opening from
Opening from
0 x 0 to 40 x 40 cm
0 x 0 to 40 x 40 cm
at SSD 100 cm
at SSD 100 cm
 Narrow pencil about
3 mm in diameter
Scattering Foil
Uniform electron
fluence across the
treatment field
e.g. lead
PDD of Photon And Electron
As Function of
Surface Dose,
 Dmax,
 Exponentional Dose Fall Off,
 Exit Dose
Isodose Properties of Photon And Electron
Why use electrons?
• Electron beam characteristics:
 Rapid rise to 100%
 Region of uniform dose
 Rapid dose fall-off
Why use electrons?
Tumors that can be treated with electrons
 – Superficial tumors
 – Lymph node boosts
 – Chest walls
 – CNS
 – TSI
• Shallow depths -build-up region caused by sidescattered
electrons
– Surface dose increases with increase in energy
Betatron
 Electron in a changing magnetic field experiences

acceleration in a circular orbit
Energy of x-rays:
6 – 40 MV
Disadvantage:
low dose rate
Small field size
Microtron
Electron accelerator which combines the principles of both linear accelerator
and the cyclotron
Advantage:
Easy energy selection, small beam
energy spread and small size
Cyclotron
 Charged particle accelerator
 Mainly used for nuclear physics research Isotopes production
 As a source of high-energy protons for proton beam therapy
 Have been adopted for generating neutron beams recently
Machines Using Radionuclides
Radionuclides have been used as source of γ (Gamma)rays for
teletherapy
• Radium-226, Cesium-137, Cobalt-60
60Co has proved to be most suitable for external beam R/T
Higher possible specific activity

Greater radiation output
Higher average photon energy
Cobalt--60 Unit
Cobalt
 Source
– From 59Co(n, γ) nuclear reactor
– Stable 59Co → radioactive 60Co
– In form of solid cylinder, discs, or pallets
 Treatment beam
60Co →60Ni + 0β(0.32 MeV) + γ(1.17 & 1.33 MeV)
Penumbra
• The region, at the edge of a radiation beam, over which
the dose rate changes rapidly as function of distance from
the beam axis
1. Transmission penumbra
2. Geometric penumbra
• Geometric penumbra
• Radiation source: not a point source
– e.g. 60 Co teletherapy → cylinder of diameter ranging from 1.0 to 2.0 cm
From considering similar triangles ABC

and DEC
DE = CE = CD = MN = OF + FN – OM
AB CA CB OM OM
AB = s (source diameter)
OF = SSD
DE = Pd ( penumbra)
Pd = s (SSD + d – SDD)
SDD
Parameters determine the width of
penumbra
25
Heavy Particle Beams
• Advantage
– Dose localization
– Therapeutic gain (greater effect on tumor than on normal
tissue)
• Including
– neutrons, protons, deuterons, αparticles, negative pions,
and heavy ions
• Still experimental
• Few institutions because of the enormous cost
Neutrons
• Sources of high energy neutron beams
– D-T generator, cyclotrons, or linear accelerators
• D-T generators
2H + 31H → 42He + 01n + 17.6 MeV
1
– Monoenergetic (14 MeV)

– Isotropic (same yield in all directions)
– Major problem
• Lack of sufficient dose rate at the treatment distance
• 15 cGy/min at 1 m
– Advantage
• Its size is small enough to allow isocentric mounting on gantry
Protons and Heavy Ions
• Energy of therapeutic proton beams
– 150 – 250 MeV
• Sources: produced by cyclotron or linear accelerator
• Major advantage
– Characteristic distribution of
dose with depth
THANKS FOR YOUR ATTENTION

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Clinical Radiation Generators

 – Typical energies are 250 and 300 kV with SSD’s up to 50cm

• Combination of forward and reverse traveling waves

 Electron in a changing magnetic field experiences

Higher possible specific activity

From considering similar triangles ABC

– Monoenergetic (14 MeV)

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