Engineering Papers⌕ Search

SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “EYES”

Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 973 records · Page 54
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2015

NuSTAR AND MULTIFREQUENCY STUDY OF THE TWO HIGH-REDSHIFT BLAZARS S5 0836+710 AND PKS 2149–306

Powerful blazars are flat-spectrum radio quasars whose emission is dominated by a Compton component peaking between a few hundred keV and a few hundred MeV. We observed two bright blazars, PKS 2149–306 at redshift z = 2.345 and S5 0836+710 at z = 2.172, in the hard X-ray band with the Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array satellite. Simultaneous soft-X-rays and UV–optical observations were performed with the Swift satellite, while near-infrared (near-IR) data were obtained with the Rapid Eye Mount telescope. To study their variability, we repeated these observations for both sources on a timescale of a few months. While no fast variability was detected during a single observation, both sources were variable in the X-ray band, up to 50%, between the two observations, with larger variability at higher energies. No variability was detected in the optical/NIR band. These data, together with Fermi-Large Area Telescope, Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, and other literature data, are then used to study the overall spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of these blazars. Although the jet nonthermal emission dominates the SED, it leaves the UV band unhidden, allowing us to detect the thermal emission of the disk and to estimate the black hole mass. The nonthermal emission is well reproduced by a one-zone leptonic model by the synchrotron, self-Compton, and external Compton processes. Our data are better reproduced if we assume that the location of the dissipation region of the jet, R{sub diss}, is in between the torus and the broad-line region. The observed variability is explained by changing a minimum number of model parameters by a very small amount.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2015

Generalised form factor dark matter in the Sun

We study the effects of energy transport in the Sun by asymmetric dark matter with momentum and velocity-dependent interactions, with an eye to solving the decade-old Solar Abundance Problem. We study effective theories where the dark matter-nucleon scattering cross-section goes as v{sub rel}{sup 2n} and q{sup 2n} with n=−1,0,1 or 2, where v{sub rel} is the dark matter-nucleon relative velocity and q is the momentum exchanged in the collision. Such cross-sections can arise generically as leading terms from the most basic nonstandard DM-quark operators. We employ a high-precision solar simulation code to study the impact on solar neutrino rates, the sound speed profile, convective zone depth, surface helium abundance and small frequency separations. We find that the majority of models that improve agreement with the observed sound speed profile and depth of the convection zone also reduce neutrino fluxes beyond the level that can be reasonably accommodated by measurement and theory errors. However, a few specific points in parameter space yield a significant overall improvement. A 3–5 GeV DM particle with σ{sub SI}∝q{sup 2} is particularly appealing, yielding more than a 6σ improvement with respect to standard solar models, while being allowed by direct detection and collider limits. We provide full analytical capture expressions for q- and v{sub rel}-dependent scattering, as well as complete likelihood tables for all models.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2018

Human Lacrimal Production Rates from Modified Schirmer-Tear Test

Significance: Here, a simple methodology is introduced to quantify basal tear production with a modified Schirmer-tear test. Purpose: We present a simple clinical procedure to measure quantitative basal tear-production flowrates, QL , from a modified Schirmer-tear test (STT). Methods: Eight healthy subjects aged at least 18 years underwent modified STTs on both eyes for two visits each. Schirmer strips were sheathed with transparent tape before insertion. Topical anesthetic minimized reflex tearing. Wetting lengths were measured every 30 s for 5 min; QL was calculated from the linear slope of wetting length versus time. Determination of QL requires mass-balance equations on the tear prism and Schirmer strip with strip imbibition kinetics obeying Darcy and Young-Laplace laws. Results: Basal tear production rates varied from essentially 0 to about 2 μl/min. With some exceptions, right and left eyes demonstrated similar tear production rates. Conclusions: By following the modified STT, QL is established with minimal additional effort over a standard Schirmer test. We predict and observe four different subtypes of imbibition kinetics depending on how short or long the time is for first appearance of the wetting front and on how fast or slow is tear production. For slow lacrimal production rates, the standard 5-min wetting length does not correlate with basal tear production.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2010

Cloning entangled photons to scales one can see

By amplifying photonic qubits it is possible to produce states that contain enough photons to be seen with the human eye, potentially bringing quantum effects to macroscopic scales [P. Sekatski, N. Brunner, C. Branciard, N. Gisin, and C. Simon, Phys. Rev. Lett. 103, 113601 (2009)]. In this paper we theoretically study quantum states obtained by amplifying one side of an entangled photon pair with different types of optical cloning machines for photonic qubits. We propose a detection scheme that involves lossy threshold detectors (such as the human eye) on the amplified side and conventional photon detectors on the other side. We show that correlations obtained with such coarse-grained measurements prove the entanglement of the initial photon pair and do not prove the entanglement of the amplified state. We emphasize the importance of the detection loophole in Bell violation experiments by giving a simple preparation technique for separable states that violate a Bell inequality without closing this loophole. Finally, we analyze the genuine entanglement of the amplified states and its robustness to losses before, during, and after amplification.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2021

A 10-Gb/s Driver/Receiver ASIC and Optical Modules for Particle Physics Experiments

We present the design and test results of a Drivers and Limiting AmplifierS ASIC operating at 10 Gbps (DLAS10) and three Miniature Optical Transmitter/Receiver/Transceiver modules (MTx+, MRx+, and MTRx+) based on DLAS10. DLAS10 can drive two Transmitter Optical Sub-Assemblies (TOSAs) of Vertical Cavity Surface Emitting Lasers (VCSELs), receive the signals from two Receiver Optical Sub-Assemblies (ROSAs) that have no embedded limiting amplifiers, or drive a VCSEL TOSA and receive the signal from a ROSA, respectively. Each channel of DLAS10 consists of an input Continuous Time Linear Equalizer (CTLE), a four-stage limiting amplifier (LA), and an output driver. The LA amplifies the signals of variable levels to a stable swing. The output driver drives VCSELs or impedance-controlled traces. DLAS10 is fabricated in a 65 nm CMOS technology. The die is 1 mm x 1 mm. DLAS10 is packaged in a 4 mm x 4 mm 24-pin quad-flat no-leads (QFN) package. DLAS10 has been tested in MTx+, MRx+, and MTRx+ modules. Both measured optical and electrical eye diagrams pass the 10 Gbps eye mask test. Furthermore, the input electrical sensitivity is 40 mVp-p, while the input optical sensitivity is -12 dBm. The total jitter of MRx+ is 29 ps (P-P) with a random jitter of 1.6 ps (RMS) and a deterministic jitter of 9.9 ps. Each MTx+/MTRx+ module consumes 82 mW/ch and 174 mW/ch, respectively.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2021

Real-Time Omnidirectional Stereo Rendering: Generating 360° Surround-View Panoramic Images for Comfortable Immersive Viewing

Surround-view panoramic images and videos have become a popular form of media for interactive viewing on mobile devices and virtual reality headsets. Viewing such media provides a sense of immersion by allowing users to control their view direction and experience an entire environment. When using a virtual reality headset, the level of immersion can be improved by leveraging stereoscopic capabilities. Stereoscopic images are generated in pairs, one for the left eye and one for the right eye, and result in providing an important depth cue for the human visual system. For computer generated imagery, rendering proper stereo pairs is well known for a fixed view. However, it is much more difficult to create omnidirectional stereo pairs for a surround-view projection that work well when looking in any direction. One major drawback of traditional omnidirectional stereo images is that they suffer from binocular misalignment in the peripheral vision as a user's view direction approaches the zenith / nadir (north / south pole) of the projection sphere. This paper presents a real-time geometry-based approach for omnidirectional stereo rendering that fits into the standard rendering pipeline. Our approach includes tunable parameters that enable pole merging - a reduction in the stereo effect near the poles that can minimize binocular misalignment. Results from a user study indicate that pole merging reduces visual fatigue and discomfort associated with binocular misalignment without inhibiting depth perception.

360° panorama↗
DOE OSTI2023

TROPHY: A Topologically Robust Physics-Informed Tracking Framework for Tropical Cyclones

Tropical cyclones (TCs) are among the most destructive weather systems. Realistically and efficiently detecting and tracking TCs are critical for assessing their impacts and risks. In particular, the eye is a signature feature of a mature TC. Therefore, knowing the eyes’ locations and movements is crucial for both operational weather forecasts and climate risk assessments. Recently, a multilevel robustness framework has been introduced to study the critical points of time-varying vector fields. The framework quantifies the robustness (i.e., structural stability) of critical points across varying neighborhoods. By relating the multilevel robustness with critical point tracking, the framework has demonstrated its potential in cyclone tracking. An advantage is that it identifies cyclonic features using only 2D wind vector fields, which is encouraging as most tracking algorithms require multiple dynamic and thermodynamic variables at different altitudes. A disadvantage is that the framework does not scale well computationally for datasets containing a large number of cyclones. Herein this paper introduces a topologically robust physics-informed tracking framework (TROPHY) for TC tracking. The main idea is to integrate physical knowledge of TC to drastically improve the computational efficiency of multilevel robustness framework for large-scale climate datasets. First, during preprocessing, we propose a physics-informed feature selection strategy to filter 90% of critical points that are short-lived and have low stability, thus preserving good candidates for TC tracking. Second, during in-processing, we impose constraints during the multilevel robustness computation to focus only on physics-informed neighborhoods of TCs. We apply TROPHY to 30 years of 2D wind fields from reanalysis data in ERA5 and generate a number of TC tracks. In comparison with the observed tracks, we demonstrate that TROPHY can capture TC characteristics (e.g., frequency, intensity, duration, latitudes with maximum intensity, and genesis) that are comparable to and sometimes even better than a well-validated TC tracking algorithm that requires multiple dynamic and thermodynamic scalar fields.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗
DOE OSTI2020

Synchrotron x-ray fluorescence analysis reveals diagenetic alteration of fossil melanosome trace metal chemistry

A key feature of the pigment melanin is its high binding affinity for trace metal ions. In modern vertebrates trace metals associated with melanosomes, melanin-rich organelles, can show tissue-specific and taxon-specific distribution patterns. Such signals preserve in fossil melanosomes, informing on the anatomy and phylogenetic affinities of fossil vertebrates. Fossil and modern melanosomes, however, often differ in trace metal chemistry; in particular, melanosomes from fossil vertebrate eyes are depleted in Zn and enriched in Cu relative to their extant counterparts. Whether these chemical differences are biological or taphonomic in origin is unknown, limiting our ability to use melanosome trace metal chemistry to test palaeobiological hypotheses. Here, we use maturation experiments on eye melanosomes from extant vertebrates and synchrotron rapid scan-x-ray fluorescence analysis to show that thermal maturation can dramatically alter melanosome trace element chemistry. In particular, maturation of melanosomes in Cu-rich solutions results in significant depletion of Zn, probably due to low pH and competition effects with Cu. These results confirm fossil melanosome chemistry is susceptible to alteration due to variations in local chemical conditions during diagenesis. Maturation experiments can provide essential data on melanosome chemical taphonomy required for accurate interpretations of preserved chemical signatures in fossils.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2011

Comparison of dose calculation methods for brachytherapy of intraocular tumors

Purpose: To investigate dosimetric differences among several clinical treatment planning systems (TPS) and Monte Carlo (MC) codes for brachytherapy of intraocular tumors using {sup 125}I or {sup 103}Pd plaques, and to evaluate the impact on the prescription dose of the adoption of MC codes and certain versions of a TPS (Plaque Simulator with optional modules). Methods: Three clinical brachytherapy TPS capable of intraocular brachytherapy treatment planning and two MC codes were compared. The TPS investigated were Pinnacle v8.0dp1, BrachyVision v8.1, and Plaque Simulator v5.3.9, all of which use the AAPM TG-43 formalism in water. The Plaque Simulator software can also handle some correction factors from MC simulations. The MC codes used are MCNP5 v1.40 and BrachyDose/EGSnrc. Using these TPS and MC codes, three types of calculations were performed: homogeneous medium with point sources (for the TPS only, using the 1D TG-43 dose calculation formalism); homogeneous medium with line sources (TPS with 2D TG-43 dose calculation formalism and MC codes); and plaque heterogeneity-corrected line sources (Plaque Simulator with modified 2D TG-43 dose calculation formalism and MC codes). Comparisons were made of doses calculated at points-of-interest on the plaque central-axis and at off-axis points of clinical interest within a standardized model of the right eye. Results: For the homogeneous water medium case, agreement was within {approx}2% for the point- and line-source models when comparing between TPS and between TPS and MC codes, respectively. For the heterogeneous medium case, dose differences (as calculated using the MC codes and Plaque Simulator) differ by up to 37% on the central-axis in comparison to the homogeneous water calculations. A prescription dose of 85 Gy at 5 mm depth based on calculations in a homogeneous medium delivers 76 Gy and 67 Gy for specific {sup 125}I and {sup 103}Pd sources, respectively, when accounting for COMS-plaque heterogeneities. For off-axis points-of-interest, dose differences approached factors of 7 and 12 at some positions for {sup 125}I and {sup 103}Pd, respectively. There was good agreement ({approx}3%) among MC codes and Plaque Simulator results when appropriate parameters calculated using MC codes were input into Plaque Simulator. Plaque Simulator and MC users are perhaps at risk of overdosing patients up to 20% if heterogeneity corrections are used and the prescribed dose is not modified appropriately. Conclusions: Agreement within 2% was observed among conventional brachytherapy TPS and MC codes for intraocular brachytherapy dose calculations in a homogeneous water environment. In general, the magnitude of dose errors incurred by ignoring the effect of the plaque backing and Silastic insert (i.e., by using the TG-43 approach) increased with distance from the plaque's central-axis. Considering the presence of material heterogeneities in a typical eye plaque, the best method in this study for dose calculations is a verified MC simulation.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2012

A database for estimating organ dose for coronary angiography and brain perfusion CT scans for arbitrary spectra and angular tube current modulation

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to develop a database for estimating organ dose in a voxelized patient model for coronary angiography and brain perfusion CT acquisitions with any spectra and angular tube current modulation setting. The database enables organ dose estimation for existing and novel acquisition techniques without requiring Monte Carlo simulations. Methods: The study simulated transport of monoenergetic photons between 5 and 150 keV for 1000 projections over 360 Degree-Sign through anthropomorphic voxelized female chest and head (0 Degree-Sign and 30 Degree-Sign tilt) phantoms and standard head and body CTDI dosimetry cylinders. The simulations resulted in tables of normalized dose deposition for several radiosensitive organs quantifying the organ dose per emitted photon for each incident photon energy and projection angle for coronary angiography and brain perfusion acquisitions. The values in a table can be multiplied by an incident spectrum and number of photons at each projection angle and then summed across all energies and angles to estimate total organ dose. Scanner-specific organ dose may be approximated by normalizing the database-estimated organ dose by the database-estimated CTDI{sub vol} and multiplying by a physical CTDI{sub vol} measurement. Two examples are provided demonstrating how to use the tables to estimate relative organ dose. In the first, the change in breast and lung dose during coronary angiography CT scans is calculated for reduced kVp, angular tube current modulation, and partial angle scanning protocols relative to a reference protocol. In the second example, the change in dose to the eye lens is calculated for a brain perfusion CT acquisition in which the gantry is tilted 30 Degree-Sign relative to a nontilted scan. Results: Our database provides tables of normalized dose deposition for several radiosensitive organs irradiated during coronary angiography and brain perfusion CT scans. Validation results indicate total organ doses calculated using our database are within 1% of those calculated using Monte Carlo simulations with the same geometry and scan parameters for all organs except red bone marrow (within 6%), and within 23% of published estimates for different voxelized phantoms. Results from the example of using the database to estimate organ dose for coronary angiography CT acquisitions show 2.1%, 1.1%, and -32% change in breast dose and 2.1%, -0.74%, and 4.7% change in lung dose for reduced kVp, tube current modulated, and partial angle protocols, respectively, relative to the reference protocol. Results show -19.2% difference in dose to eye lens for a tilted scan relative to a nontilted scan. The reported relative changes in organ doses are presented without quantification of image quality and are for the sole purpose of demonstrating the use of the proposed database. Conclusions: The proposed database and calculation method enable the estimation of organ dose for coronary angiography and brain perfusion CT scans utilizing any spectral shape and angular tube current modulation scheme by taking advantage of the precalculated Monte Carlo simulation results. The database can be used in conjunction with image quality studies to develop optimized acquisition techniques and may be particularly beneficial for optimizing dual kVp acquisitions for which numerous kV, mA, and filtration combinations may be investigated.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2013

Correlation between human observer performance and model observer performance in differential phase contrast CT

Purpose: With the recently expanding interest and developments in x-ray differential phase contrast CT (DPC-CT), the evaluation of its task-specific detection performance and comparison with the corresponding absorption CT under a given radiation dose constraint become increasingly important. Mathematical model observers are often used to quantify the performance of imaging systems, but their correlations with actual human observers need to be confirmed for each new imaging method. This work is an investigation of the effects of stochastic DPC-CT noise on the correlation of detection performance between model and human observers with signal-known-exactly (SKE) detection tasks.Methods: The detectabilities of different objects (five disks with different diameters and two breast lesion masses) embedded in an experimental DPC-CT noise background were assessed using both model and human observers. The detectability of the disk and lesion signals was then measured using five types of model observers including the prewhitening ideal observer, the nonprewhitening (NPW) observer, the nonprewhitening observer with eye filter and internal noise (NPWEi), the prewhitening observer with eye filter and internal noise (PWEi), and the channelized Hotelling observer (CHO). The same objects were also evaluated by four human observers using the two-alternative forced choice method. The results from the model observer experiment were quantitatively compared to the human observer results to assess the correlation between the two techniques.Results: The contrast-to-detail (CD) curve generated by the human observers for the disk-detection experiments shows that the required contrast to detect a disk is inversely proportional to the square root of the disk size. Based on the CD curves, the ideal and NPW observers tend to systematically overestimate the performance of the human observers. The NPWEi and PWEi observers did not predict human performance well either, as the slopes of their CD curves tended to be steeper. The CHO generated the best quantitative agreement with human observers with its CD curve overlapping with that of human observer. Statistical equivalence between CHO and humans can be claimed within 11% of the human observer results, including both the disk and lesion detection experiments.Conclusions: The model observer method can be used to accurately represent human observer performance with the stochastic DPC-CT noise for SKE tasks with sizes ranging from 8 to 128 pixels. The incorporation of the anatomical noise remains to be studied.

62 RADIOLOGY AND NUCLEAR MEDICINE↗
DOE OSTI2014

Dosimetric properties of a proton beamline dedicated to the treatment of ocular disease

Purpose: A commercial proton eyeline has been developed to treat ocular disease. Radiotherapy of intraocular lesions (e.g., uveal melanoma, age-related macular degeneration) requires sharp dose gradients to avoid critical structures like the macula and optic disc. A high dose rate is needed to limit patient gazing times during delivery of large fractional dose. Dose delivery needs to be accurate and predictable, not in the least because current treatment planning algorithms have limited dose modeling capabilities. The purpose of this paper is to determine the dosimetric properties of a new proton eyeline. These properties are compared to those of existing systems and evaluated in the context of the specific clinical requirements of ocular treatments. Methods: The eyeline is part of a high-energy, cyclotron-based proton therapy system. The energy at the entrance of the eyeline is 105 MeV. A range modulator (RM) wheel generates the spread-out Bragg peak, while a variable range shifter system adjusts the range and spreads the beam laterally. The range can be adjusted from 0.5 up to 3.4 g/cm{sup 2}; the modulation width can be varied in steps of 0.3 g/cm{sup 2} or less. Maximum field diameter is 2.5 cm. All fields can be delivered with a dose rate of 30 Gy/min or more. The eyeline is calibrated according to the IAEA TRS-398 protocol using a cylindrical ionization chamber. Depth dose distributions and dose/MU are measured with a parallel-plate ionization chamber; lateral profiles with radiochromic film. The dose/MU is modeled as a function of range, modulation width, and instantaneous MU rate with fit parameters determined per option (RM wheel). Results: The distal fall-off of the spread-out Bragg peak is 0.3 g/cm{sup 2}, larger than for most existing systems. The lateral penumbra varies between 0.9 and 1.4 mm, except for fully modulated fields that have a larger penumbra at skin. The source-to-axis distance is found to be 169 cm. The dose/MU shows a strong dependence on range (up to 4%/mm). A linear increase in dose/MU as a function of instantaneous MU rate is observed. The dose/MU model describes the measurements with an accuracy of ±2%. Neutron dose is found to be 146 ± 102 μSv/Gy at the contralateral eye and 19 ± 13 μSv/Gy at the chest. Conclusions: Measurements show the proton eyeline meets the requirements to effectively treat ocular disease.

62 RADIOLOGY AND NUCLEAR MEDICINE↗
DOE OSTI2014

A limited-angle intrafraction verification (LIVE) system for radiation therapy

Purpose: Currently, no 3D or 4D volumetric x-ray imaging techniques are available for intrafraction verification of target position during actual treatment delivery or in-between treatment beams, which is critical for stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) and stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) treatments. This study aims to develop a limited-angle intrafraction verification (LIVE) system to use prior information, deformation models, and limited angle kV-MV projections to verify target position intrafractionally. Methods: The LIVE system acquires limited-angle kV projections simultaneously during arc treatment delivery or in-between static 3D/IMRT treatment beams as the gantry moves from one beam to the next. Orthogonal limited-angle MV projections are acquired from the beam's eye view (BEV) exit fluence of arc treatment beam or in-between static beams to provide additional anatomical information. MV projections are converted to kV projections using a linear conversion function. Patient prior planning CT at one phase is used as the prior information, and the on-board patient volume is considered as a deformation of the prior images. The deformation field is solved using the data fidelity constraint, a breathing motion model extracted from the planning 4D-CT based on principal component analysis (PCA) and a free-form deformation (FD) model. LIVE was evaluated using a 4D digital extended cardiac torso phantom (XCAT) and a CIRS 008A dynamic thoracic phantom. In the XCAT study, patient breathing pattern and tumor size changes were simulated from CT to treatment position. In the CIRS phantom study, the artificial target in the lung region experienced both size change and position shift from CT to treatment position. Varian Truebeam research mode was used to acquire kV and MV projections simultaneously during the delivery of a dynamic conformal arc plan. The reconstruction accuracy was evaluated by calculating the 3D volume percentage difference (VPD) and the center of mass (COM) difference of the tumor in the true on-board images and reconstructed images. Results: In both simulation and phantom studies, LIVE achieved substantially better reconstruction accuracy than reconstruction using PCA or FD deformation model alone. In the XCAT study, the average VPD and COM differences among different patient scenarios for LIVE system using orthogonal 30° scan angles were 4.3% and 0.3 mm when using kV+BEV MV. Reducing scan angle to 15° increased the average VPD and COM differences to 15.1% and 1.7 mm. In the CIRS phantom study, the VPD and COM differences for the LIVE system using orthogonal 30° scan angles were 6.4% and 1.4 mm. Reducing scan angle to 15° increased the VPD and COM differences to 51.9% and 3.8 mm. Conclusions: The LIVE system has the potential to substantially improve intrafraction target localization accuracy by providing volumetric verification of tumor position simultaneously during arc treatment delivery or in-between static treatment beams. With this improvement, LIVE opens up a new avenue for margin reduction and dose escalation in both fractionated treatments and SRS and SBRT treatments.

62 RADIOLOGY AND NUCLEAR MEDICINE↗
DOE OSTI2014

SU-E-J-69: Evaluation of the Lens Dose On the Cone Beam IGRT Procedures

Purpose: With the establishment of the IGRT as a standard technique, the extra dose that is given to the patients should be taken into account. Furthermore, it has been a recent decrease of the dose threshold in the lens, reduced to 0.5 Gy (ICRP ref 4825-3093-1464 on 21st April, 2011).The purpose of this work was to evaluate the extra dose that the lens is receive due to the Cone-Beam (CBCT) location systems in Head-and-Neck treatments. Methods: The On-Board Imaging (OBI) v 1.5 of the two Varian accelerators, one Clinac iX and one True Beam, were used to obtain the dose that this OBI version give to the lens in the Head-and-Neck location treatments. All CBCT scans were acquired with the Standard Dose Head protocol (100 kVp, 80 mA, 8 ms and 200 degree of rotation).The measurements were taken with thermoluminescence (TLD) EXTRAD (Harshaw) dosimeters placed in an anthropomorphic phantom over the eye and under 3 mm of bolus material to mimic the lens position. The center of the head was placed at the isocenter. To reduce TLD energy dependence, they were calibrated at the used beam quality. Results: The average lens dose at the lens in the OBI v 1.5 systems of the Clinac iX and the True Beam is 0.071 and 0.076 cGy/CBCT, respectively. Conclusions: The extra absorbed doses that receive the eye lenses due to one CBCT acquisition with the studied protocol is far below the new ICRP recommended threshold for the lens. However, the addition effect of several CBCT acquisition during the whole treatment should be taken into account.

61 RADIATION PROTECTION AND DOSIMETRY↗
DOE OSTI2014

SU-E-T-08: A Convolution Model for Head Scatter Fluence in the Intensity Modulated Field

Purpose: To efficiently calculate the head scatter fluence for an arbitrary intensity-modulated field with any source distribution using the source occlusion model. Method: The source occlusion model with focal and extra focal radiation (Jaffray et al, 1993) can be used to account for LINAC head scatter. In the model, the fluence map of any field shape at any point can be calculated via integration of the source distribution within the visible range, as confined by each segment, using the detector eye's view. A 2D integration would be required for each segment and each fluence plane point, which is time-consuming, as an intensity-modulated field contains typically tens to hundreds of segments. In this work, we prove that the superposition of the segmental integrations is equivalent to a simple convolution regardless of what the source distribution is. In fact, for each point, the detector eye's view of the field shape can be represented as a function with the origin defined at the point's pinhole reflection through the center of the collimator plane. We were thus able to reduce hundreds of source plane integration to one convolution. We calculated the fluence map for various 3D and IMRT beams and various extra-focal source distributions using both the segmental integration approach and the convolution approach and compared the computation time and fluence map results of both approaches. Results: The fluence maps calculated using the convolution approach were the same as those calculated using the segmental approach, except for rounding errors (<0.1%). While it took considerably longer time to calculate all segmental integrations, the fluence map calculation using the convolution approach took only ∼1/3 of the time for typical IMRT fields with ∼100 segments. Conclusions: The convolution approach for head scatter fluence calculation is fast and accurate and can be used to enhance the online process.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2014

SU-E-T-183: Feasibility of Extreme Dose Escalation for Glioblastoma Multiforme Using 4π Radiotherapy

Purpose: GBM recurrence primarily occurs inside or near the high-dose radiation field of original tumor site requiring greater than 100 Gy to significantly improve local control. We utilize 4π non-coplanar radiotherapy to test the feasibility of planning target volume (PTV) margin expansions or extreme dose escalations without incurring additional radiation toxicities. Methods: 11 GBM patients treated with VMAT to a prescription dose of 59.4 Gy or 60 Gy were replanned with 4π. Original VMAT plans were created with 2 to 4 coplanar or non-coplanar arcs using 3 mm hi-res MLC. The 4π optimization, using 5 mm MLC, selected and inverse optimized 30 beams from a candidate pool of 1162 beams evenly distributed through 4π steradians. 4π plans were first compared to clinical plans using the same prescription dose. Two more studies were then performed to respectively escalate the GTV and PTV doses to 100 Gy, followed by a fourth plan expanding the PTV by 5 mm and maintaining the prescription dose. Results: The standard 4π plan significantly reduced (p<0.01) max and mean doses to critical structures by a range of 47.0–98.4% and 61.0–99.2%, respectively. The high dose PTV/high dose GTV/expanded PTV studies showed a reduction (p<0.05) or unchanged* (p>0.05) maximum dose of 72.1%/86.7%/77.1% (chiasm), 7.2%*/27.7%*/30.7% (brainstem), 39.8%*/84.2%/51.9%* (spinal cord), 69.0%/87.0%/66.9% (L eye), 76.2%/88.1%/84.1% (R eye), 95.0%/98.6%/97.5% (L lens), 93.9%/98.8%/97.6% (R lens), 74.3%/88.5%/72.4% (L optical nerve), 80.4%/91.3%/75.7% (R optical nerve), 64.8%/84.2%/44.9%* (L cochlea), and 85.2%/93.0%/78.0% (R cochlea), respectively. V30 and V36 for both brain and (brain - PTV) were reduced for all cases except the high dose PTV plan. PTV dose coverage increased for all 4π plans. Conclusion: Extreme dose escalation or further margin expansion is achievable using 4π, maintaining or reducing OAR doses. This study indicates that clinical trials employing 4π delivery using prescription doses up to 100 Gy are feasible. Funding support partially contributed by Varian.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2014

SU-E-T-546: Use of Implant Volume for Quality Assurance of Low Dose Rate Brachytherapy Treatment Plans

Purpose: To analyze the application of volume implant (V100) data as a method for a global check of low dose rate (LDR) brachytherapy plans. Methods: Treatment plans for 335 consecutive patients undergoing permanent seed implants for prostate cancer and for 113 patients treated with plaque therapy for ocular melanoma were analyzed. Plaques used were 54 COMS (10 to 20 mm, notched and regular) and 59 Eye Physics EP917s with variable loading. Plots of treatment time x implanted activity per unit dose versus v100 ^.667 were made. V100 values were obtained using dose volume histograms calculated by the treatment planning systems (Variseed 8.02 and Plaque Simulator 5.4). Four different physicists were involved in planning the prostate seed cases; two physicists for the eye plaques. Results: Since the time and dose for the prostate cases did not vary, a plot of implanted activity vs V100 ^.667 was made. A linear fit with no intercept had an r{sup 2} = 0.978; more than 94% of the actual activities fell within 5% of the activities calculated from the linear fit. The greatest deviations were in cases where the implant volumes were large (> 100 cc). Both COMS and EP917 plaque linear fits were good (r{sup 2} = .967 and .957); the largest deviations were seen for large volumes. Conclusions: The method outlined here is effective for checking planning consistency and quality assurance of two types of LDR brachytherapy treatment plans (temporary and permanent). A spreadsheet for the calculations enables a quick check of the plan in situations were time is short (e.g. OR-based prostate planning)

07 ISOTOPE AND RADIATION SOURCES↗
DOE OSTI2015

Experimental depth dose curves of a 67.5 MeV proton beam for benchmarking and validation of Monte Carlo simulation

Purpose: To measure depth dose curves for a 67.5 ± 0.1 MeV proton beam for benchmarking and validation of Monte Carlo simulation. Methods: Depth dose curves were measured in 2 beam lines. Protons in the raw beam line traversed a Ta scattering foil, 0.1016 or 0.381 mm thick, a secondary emission monitor comprised of thin Al foils, and a thin Kapton exit window. The beam energy and peak width and the composition and density of material traversed by the beam were known with sufficient accuracy to permit benchmark quality measurements. Diodes for charged particle dosimetry from two different manufacturers were used to scan the depth dose curves with 0.003 mm depth reproducibility in a water tank placed 300 mm from the exit window. Depth in water was determined with an uncertainty of 0.15 mm, including the uncertainty in the water equivalent depth of the sensitive volume of the detector. Parallel-plate chambers were used to verify the accuracy of the shape of the Bragg peak and the peak-to-plateau ratio measured with the diodes. The uncertainty in the measured peak-to-plateau ratio was 4%. Depth dose curves were also measured with a diode for a Bragg curve and treatment beam spread out Bragg peak (SOBP) on the beam line used for eye treatment. The measurements were compared to Monte Carlo simulation done with GEANT4 using TOPAS. Results: The 80% dose at the distal side of the Bragg peak for the thinner foil was at 37.47 ± 0.11 mm (average of measurement with diodes from two different manufacturers), compared to the simulated value of 37.20 mm. The 80% dose for the thicker foil was at 35.08 ± 0.15 mm, compared to the simulated value of 34.90 mm. The measured peak-to-plateau ratio was within one standard deviation experimental uncertainty of the simulated result for the thinnest foil and two standard deviations for the thickest foil. It was necessary to include the collimation in the simulation, which had a more pronounced effect on the peak-to-plateau ratio for the thicker foil. The treatment beam, being unfocussed, had a broader Bragg peak than the raw beam. A 1.3 ± 0.1 MeV FWHM peak width in the energy distribution was used in the simulation to match the Bragg peak width. An additional 1.3–2.24 mm of water in the water column was required over the nominal values to match the measured depth penetration. Conclusions: The proton Bragg curve measured for the 0.1016 mm thick Ta foil provided the most accurate benchmark, having a low contribution of proton scatter from upstream of the water tank. The accuracy was 0.15% in measured beam energy and 0.3% in measured depth penetration at the Bragg peak. The depth of the distal edge of the Bragg peak in the simulation fell short of measurement, suggesting that the mean ionization potential of water is 2–5 eV higher than the 78 eV used in the stopping power calculation for the simulation. The eye treatment beam line depth dose curves provide validation of Monte Carlo simulation of a Bragg curve and SOBP with 4%/2 mm accuracy.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗