Negative ion beam source vacuum method and apparatus used in conjunction with a charged particle cancer therapy system
First Claim
1. An apparatus for converting a charged particle stream into a charged particle beam used in a cancer therapy system, said apparatus comprising:
- a negative ion source configured to produce the charged particle stream in a first partial vacuum section; and
a converting foil configured to convert the charged particle stream into the charged particle beam, the charged particle beam comprising an oppositely signed charge from the charged particle stream,wherein said converting foil provides a portion of a vacuum barrier between said first partial vacuum section and a second partial vacuum section in a synchrotron, andwherein a first pump system operates to maintain a first partial vacuum in said first partial vacuum section.
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Accused Products
Abstract
The invention comprises a negative ion beam source vacuum method and apparatus used as part of an ion beam injection system, which is used in conjunction with multi-axis charged particle or proton beam radiation therapy of cancerous tumors. The negative ion beam source contains a vacuum chamber isolated by a vacuum barrier from the vacuum tube of the synchrotron. The negative ion beam source vacuum system preferably includes: a first pump turbo molecular pump, a large holding volume, and a semi-continuously operating pump. By only pumping ion beam source vacuum chamber and by only semi-continuously operating the ion beam source vacuum based on sensor readings about the holding volume, the lifetime of the semi-continuously operating pump is extended.
307 Citations
20 Claims
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1. An apparatus for converting a charged particle stream into a charged particle beam used in a cancer therapy system, said apparatus comprising:
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a negative ion source configured to produce the charged particle stream in a first partial vacuum section; and a converting foil configured to convert the charged particle stream into the charged particle beam, the charged particle beam comprising an oppositely signed charge from the charged particle stream, wherein said converting foil provides a portion of a vacuum barrier between said first partial vacuum section and a second partial vacuum section in a synchrotron, and wherein a first pump system operates to maintain a first partial vacuum in said first partial vacuum section. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. A method for converting a charged particle stream into a charged particle beam used in a cancer therapy system, said method comprising the steps of:
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generating the charged particle stream in a first partial vacuum section using a negative ion source; converting the charged particle stream into an oppositely charged particle beam with a converting foil; and maintaining a first partial vacuum in said first partial vacuum section with a first pump system, wherein said converting foil provides a portion of a vacuum barrier between said first partial vacuum section and a second partial vacuum section in a synchrotron used in said cancer therapy system. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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20. A method for converting a charged particle stream into a charged particle beam used in a cancer therapy system, said method comprising the steps of:
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converting the charged particle stream into the charged particle beam with a converting foil, the converting foil comprising carbon, wherein the charged particle beam comprising an oppositely signed charge from the charged particle stream; and maintaining a first partial vacuum in said first partial vacuum section with a first pump system, wherein said converting foil provides a portion of a vacuum barrier between a source of the charged particles and a second partial vacuum section in a synchrotron.
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Specification