Konrad Pawel Nesteruk

A beam monitor detector based on doped silica and optical fibres

A beam monitor detector prototype based on doped silica fibres coupled to optical fibres has been designed, constructed and tested, mainly for accelerators used in medical applications. Scintillation light produced by Ce and Sb doped silica fibres moving across the beam has been measured, giving information on beam position, shape and intensity. Mostly based on commercial components, the detector is easy to install, to operate and no electronic components are located near the beam. Tests have been performed with a 2 MeV proton pulsed beam at an average current of 0.8 μA. The response characteristics of Sb doped silica fibres have been studied for the first time.

Low current performance of the Bern medical cyclotron down to the pA range

A medical cyclotron accelerating H− ions to 18 MeV is in operation at the Bern University Hospital (Inselspital). It is the commercial IBA 18/18 cyclotron equipped with a specifically conceived 6 m long external beam line ending in a separate bunker. This feature is unique for a hospital-based facility and makes it possible to conduct routine radioisotope production for PET diagnostics in parallel with multidisciplinary research activities, among which are novel particle detectors, radiation biophysics, radioprotection, radiochemistry and radiopharmacy developments. Several of these activities, such as radiobiology experiments for example, require low current beams down to the pA range, while medical cyclotrons are designed for high current operation above 10 μA. In this paper, we present the first results on the low current performance of a PET medical cyclotron obtained by ion source, radio-frequency and main coil tuning. With this method, stable beam currents down to () pA were obtained and measured with a high-sensitivity Faraday cup located at the end of the beam transport line.

A detector based on silica fibers for ion beam monitoring in a wide current range

A detector based on doped silica and optical fibers was developed to monitor the profile of particle accelerator beams of intensity ranging from 1 pA to tens of μA. Scintillation light produced in a fiber moving across the beam is measured, giving information on its position, shape and intensity. The detector was tested with a continuous proton beam at the 18 MeV Bern medical cyclotron used for radioisotope production and multi-disciplinary research. For currents from 1 pA to 20 μA, Ce3+ and Sb3+ doped silica fibers were used as sensors. Read-out systems based on photodiodes, photomultipliers and solid state photomultipliers were employed. Profiles down to the pA range were measured with this method for the first time. For currents ranging from 1 pA to 3 μA, the integral of the profile was found to be linear with respect to the beam current, which can be measured by this detector with an accuracy of ~1%. The profile was determined with a spatial resolution of 0.25 mm. For currents ranging from 5 μA to 20 μA, thermal effects affect light yield and transmission, causing distortions of the profile and limitations in monitoring capabilities. For currents higher than ~1 μA, non-doped optical fibers for both producing and transporting scintillation light were also successfully employed.

Study of the radioactivity induced in air by a 15-MeV proton beam

Radioactivity induced by a 15-MeV proton beam extracted into air was studied at the beam transport line of the 18-MeV cyclotron at the Bern University Hospital (Inselspital). The produced radioactivity was calculated and measured by means of proportional counters located at the main exhaust of the laboratory. These devices were designed for precise assessment of air contamination for radiation protection purposes. The main produced isotopes were (11)C, (13)N and (14)O. Both measurements and calculations correspond to two different irradiation conditions. In the former, protons were allowed to travel for their full range in air. In the latter, they were stopped at the distance of 1.5 m by a beam dump. Radioactivity was measured continuously in the exhausted air starting from 2 min after the end of irradiation. For this reason, the short-lived (14)O isotope gave a negligible contribution to the measured activity. Good agreement was found between the measurements and the calculations within the estimated uncertainties. Currents in the range of 120-370 nA were extracted in air for 10-30 s producing activities of 9-22 MBq of (11)C and (13)N. The total activities for (11)C and (13)N per beam current and irradiation time for the former and the latter irradiation conditions were measured to be (3.60 ± 0.48) × 10(-3) MBq (nA s)(-1) and (2.89 ± 0.37) × 10(-3) MBq (nA s)(-1), respectively.

Measurement of 43Sc and 44Sc production cross-section with an 18 MeV medical PET cyclotron

43Sc and 44Sc are positron emitter radionuclides that, in conjunction with the β- emitter 47Sc, represent one of the most promising possibilities for theranostics in nuclear medicine. Their availability in suitable quantity and quality for medical applications is an open issue and their production with medical cyclotrons represents a scientific and technological challenge. For this purpose, an accurate knowledge of the production cross sections is mandatory. In this paper, we report on the cross section measurement of the reactions 43Ca(p,n)43Sc, 44Ca(p,2n) 43Sc, 46Ti(p,α)43Sc, and 44Ca(p,n)44Sc at the Bern University Hospital cyclotron. A study of the production yield and purity performed by using commercially available enriched target materials is also presented.

A system for online beam emittance measurements and proton beam characterization

A system for online measurement of the transverse beam emittance was developed. It is named

Accelerator and detector physics at the Bern medical cyclotron and its beam transport line.

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UniBEaM: A silica fiber monitor for charged particle beams

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Proton scattering radiography using an emulsion detector: a feasibility study.

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Characterization of the dose distribution in the halo region of a clinical proton pencil beam using emulsion film detectors

aM (4-Profiler Online Beam Emittance Measurement) and was conceived to measure the emittance in a fast and efficient way using the multiple beam profiler method. The core of the system is constituted by four consecutive UniBEaM profilers, which are based on silica fibers passing across the beam. The