Fiber-optic sensor system for measuring relative dose of therapeutic proton beam by measuring cerenkov radiation and method of measuring using the same

• US 9,322,927 B2
• Filed: 07/23/2012
• Issued: 04/26/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 07/23/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Konkuk University Glocal-Industry-Academic Collaboration Foundation
• Original Assignee: Konkuk University Industrial Cooperation Corp
• Inventors: Lee, Bong Soo, Jang, Kyoung Won, Yoo, Wook Jae, Shin, Sang Hun, Shin, Dong Ho
• Primary Examiner(s): Makiya, David J
• Assistant Examiner(s): Jo, Taeho
• Application Number:
  US14/415,055
• Publication Number:
  US 20150168563A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,373 Days
• Field of Search: 250/393
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 2005/1076 using a dummy object placed in the radiation field, e.g. phantom
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 2005/1087 Ions; Protons
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 5/1075 for testing, calibrating, or quality assurance of the radiation treatment apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: G01T 1/02 Dosimeters G01T1/15 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01T 1/22 with Cerenkov detectors

Abstract

The present invention relates to a fiber-optic sensor system for measuring the relative dose of a therapeutic proton beam by measuring Cerenkov radiation and a method of measuring using the same, and more particularly to a fiber-optic sensor system for precisely and economically measuring a proton beam by measuring the Cerenkov radiation generated from a fiber-optic sensor and a method of measuring using the same. The present invention comprises a proton beam source, a fiber-optic sensor for measuring the Bragg peak of the proton beam and SOBP, an optical detector for measuring the Cerenkov radiation, and a pair of optical fibers connecting the fiber-optic sensor and the optical detector, wherein the fiber-optic sensor being irradiated with a proton beam, the Cerenkov radiation generated in the optical fibers themselves is delivered through the optical detector to an amplifier system, and the resulting signal is transferred to a computer.

Claims

1. A fiber-optic radiation sensor system comprising:

a proton beam source emitting a high-energy therapeutic proton beam;

a pair of optical fibers for being emitted by the proton beam, wherein the pair of optical fibers have different lengths at one ends of the pair of optical fibers;

a fiber-optic radiation sensor for generating Cerenkov radiation by the emitted proton beam, wherein the one ends of the pair of optical fibers are fixed inside the fiber-optic radiation sensor; and

a light measuring device for detecting the Cerenkov radiation to measure a Bragg peak and a spread-out Bragg peak (SOBP) of the proton beam, wherein the other ends of the pair of optical fibers are connected to the light measuring device.

2. The fiber-optic radiation sensor system of claim 1, wherein the optical fibers are glass or plastic optical fibers and are configured to generate the Cerenkov radiation when a high-energy charged particle is emitted.

3. The fiber-optic radiation sensor system of claim 1, wherein the light measuring device is any one of a charge-coupled device (CCD), a photodiode, and a photomultiplier tube (PMT).

4. The fiber-optic radiation sensor system of claim 1, wherein the sensor system further comprises:

an amplifier system for generating a final signal by amplifying a signal of the light measuring device generated by the Cerenkov radiation; and

a computer for measuring a relative dose of the proton beam based on the final signal.

5. The fiber-optic radiation sensor system of claim 1, wherein the different lengths at the one ends of the pair of optical fibers in the fiber-optic radiation sensor are fixed using a subtraction scheme based on a reference optical fiber.

6. The fiber-optic radiation sensor system of claim 5, wherein the one ends of the pair of optical fibers in the fiber-optic radiation sensor are composed of the reference optical fiber and an optical fiber which is about 5cm longer than the reference optical fiber.

7. The fiber-optic radiation sensor system of claim 1, wherein the Bragg peak and the SOBP are measured by measuring the Cerenkov radiation depending on a depth of a water phantom.

8. A method for measuring Cerenkov radiation, comprising:

(a) emitting a high-energy therapeutic proton beam to a pair of optical fibers having different lengths at one ends of the pair of optical fibers with a proton beam source;

(b) generating Cerenkov radiation by the emitted proton beam with a fiber-optic radiation sensor which the one ends of the pair of optical fibers are fixed inside the fiber-optic radiation sensor; and

(c) detecting measuring the Cerenkov radiation to measure a Bragg peak and a spread-out Bragg peak (SOBP) of the proton beam with a light measuring device which the other ends of the pair of optical fibers are connected to the light measuring device.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the optical fibers are glass or plastic optical fibers and are configured to generate the Cerenkov radiation when a high-energy charged particle is emitted.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein the light measuring device is any one of a charge-coupled device (CCD), a photodiode, and a photomultiplier tube (PMT).

11. The method of claim 8, wherein the method further comprises:

(d) generating a final signal by amplifying a signal of the light measuring device generated by the Cerenkov radiation with an amplifier system; and

(e) measuring a relative dose of the proton beam based on the final signal with a computer.

12. The method of claim 8, wherein the different lengths at the one ends of the pair of optical fibers in the fiber-optic radiation sensor are fixed using a subtraction scheme based on a reference optical fiber.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the one ends of the pair of optical fibers in the fiber optic radiation sensor are composed of the reference optical fiber and an optical fiber which is about 5 cm longer than the reference optical fiber.

14. The method of claim 8, wherein the Bragg peak and the SOBP are measured by measuring the Cerenkov radiation depending on a depth of a water phantom.