Flash therapy with ultra-high dose rate beams opens up the
possibility of significantly reducing radiation damage to normal
tissues. But that type of radiotherapy requires the development of
new methods for dosimetry and monitoring of beams, since many
conventional detectors are not fully suitable for these purposes. In
this work, the characteristics of a new proton beam monitor that
detects Cherenkov radiation from secondary delta electrons were
studied in flash mode of irradiation. This monitor is applicable for
proton beams of any intensity, very transparent for fast protons,
and can provide real-time control of the absorbed dose and beam
position. To record Cherenkov radiation, generated in a thin glass
radiator located in the beam in front of the target, we used
single-channel and multichannel photomultipliers. Proton beams with
an energy of 160 MeV and a current of 1 mA were studied. The
readings of a Cherenkov monitor, EBT-XD films, and a beam current
transformer were compared and consistency of these detectors was
found. The linearity of the Cherenkov monitor readings vs dose is
very high (R
2 = 0.9995). This monitor can be used for real-time
control of the absorbed dose and of the beam position in flash
therapy for any intensity of proton beams.