In this study, we performed on-beam monitoring of 511 keV annihilation gamma emissions using a Compton camera. Beam monitoring experiments were conducted using carbon ion beams of 290 MeV/u irradiated on a polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) phantom. The intensity of the beams was 3  ×  109 particles per pulse, with 20 pulses per minute. A Compton camera based on a silicon/cadmium telluride (Si/CdTe) detector was used to monitor the annihilation gamma rays emitted from the phantom. We successfully reconstructed the energy events of 511 keV annihilation gamma rays and developed Compton images using a simple back-projection method. The distribution of the annihilation gamma ray generation traced the beam trajectory and the peak intensity position was a few millimeters shorter than the Bragg peak position. Moreover, the effect of the beam range shifter with 30, 60, and 90 mm water equivalent thickness (WET) was clearly visualized in the reconstructed Compton images. The experimentally measured values of the corresponding range shifts in the PMMA phantom (28.70 mm, 52.49 mm, and 76.77 mm, respectively) were consistent with the shifts of the Bragg peak position (25.50 mm, 51.30 mm and 76.70 mm, respectively) evaluated by Monte Carlo simulation. The results show that the Si/CdTe Compton camera has strong potential for on-beam monitoring of annihilation gamma rays in particle therapy in clinical situations.

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The application of annihilation gamma-ray monitoring to the adaptive therapy of carbon ion radiotherapy (C-ion RT) requires identification of the peak intensity position and confirmation of activated elements with annihilation gamma-rays generated at the C-ion-irradiated site from those transported to unirradiated sites. Real-time monitoring of C-ion-induced annihilation gamma-rays was implemented using a Compton camera in a mouse model. An adult C57BL/6 mouse was anesthetized, and C-ion beams were directed into the abdomen at 1 × 10 9 particles/s for 20 s. The 511 keV annihilation gamma-rays, generated by the interaction between the irradiated C-ion beam and the target mouse, were detected using a silicon/cadmium telluride (Si/CdTe) Compton camera for 20 min immediately after irradiation. The irradiated site and the peak intensity position of 511 keV gamma emissions due to C-ion beam irradiation on a mouse were observed at the abdomen of the mouse by developing Compton images. Moreover, the positron emitter transport was observed by evaluating the range of gamma-ray emission after the C-ion beam irradiation on the mouse. Our data suggest that by confirming the peak intensity and beam range of C-ion RT with Si/CdTe-based Compton camera, it would be possible to reduce the intra-fractional and inter-fractional dose distribution degradation. Therefore, the results of this study would contribute to the future development of adaptive therapy with C-ion RT for humans.

A radio-photoluminescence (RPL) dosimeter with a copper-ion luminescent center was fabricated to evaluate its response in ionized particle detection. A focused proton microbeam with varying energies up to 3 MeV and heavy ions of 490 MeV osmium (Os) were employed along with X-rays to evaluate its performance in micrometer-scale radiation monitoring. The response to ionized particles was evaluated under focused proton beam irradiation where the peak wavelength differed from that obtained under X-ray irradiation. Two peaks were observed under Os irradiation where the secondary-generated particles and photons have a significant effect on the dosimeter. The results suggest that the fabricated RPL dosimeter with copper luminescence center could be used to estimate the irradiation effect of primary ionized particles separately from the effects of secondary particles, photons, and environmental background radiation.

An elasticity imaging method using continuous shear wave excitation (CSWE) is expected to be a safe and quantitative technique. A velocity map could be produced by propagating wave number spectrum analysis of a two-dimensional (2D) displacement map of shear wave propagation. However; the problems of accuracy and resolution have limited the reliability of this technique in medical diagnosis. In this paper, we propose a shear wave imaging system for reconstructing the spatial phase modulation component of shear wave propagation in order to obtain high-resolution images of continuous shear wave excitation. Shear wave local velocity, which is derived from the spatial differentation of the phase of complex displacement, is adopted as an imaging parameter. A fine texture-like pattern of the phase modulation component appears in the local velocity map, which gives precise information of small-amplitude phase modulation.