1,720,964 research outputs found
Monte Carlo simulation of the dose deposited into GAFCHROMIC® film by X-rays produced by the electron beam of PFMA-3
No full textThe electron beam emitted backward by Plasma Focus devices is being investigated as a radiation source for IORT (Intra-Operative Radiation Therapy) applications. A Plasma Focus device is being developed to this aim, to be utilized as an X-ray source. The electron beam is driven to impinge on a 50 μm brass foil, where conversion X-rays are generated. Monte Carlo simulations of the X-ray emission have been conducted with MCNPX, with the purpose of estimating penetration in and dose to human tissue. The electron spectrum had been determined experimentally and is used in the present work as input to the simulations. X-ray emission both from bremsstrahlung and from characteristic lines is predicted. The spectrum is found to be comprised of two components: one peaked at 10 keV and one centred around 50 keV. Doses to film determined from the present simulations are compared to experimental values obtained in a previous work by the authors: the results are found in very good agreement
A range-based method to calibrate a magnetic spectrometer measuring the energy spectrum of the backward electron beam of a plasma focus
No full textThe electron beam emitted from the back of plasma focus devices is being studied as a radiation source for intraoperative radiation therapy applications. A plasma focus device is being developed for this purpose, and there is a need for characterizing its electron beam, particularly, insofar as the energy spectrum is concerned. The instrument used is a magnetic spectrometer. To calibrate this spectrometer, a procedure relying on the energy-range relation in Mylar R has been devised and applied. By measuring the transmission through increasing thicknesses of the material, electron energies could be assessed and compared to the spectrometer readings. Thus, the original calibration of the instrument has been extended to higher energies and also to better accuracy. Methods and results are presented
The effect of scattering by water on the irradiation of cell cultures for the dosimetric characterization of a new prototype of IORT (Intra-Operative Radiation Therapy) device: Monte Carlo simulation and experimental validation
No full textThe electron beam emitted backward by Plasma Focus devices is being considered as a radiation source for IORT applications. Radiobiological investigations have been conducted to assess the potential of this new prototype of IORT device. A standard Xray beam ISO-H60 was used for comparison, irradiating cell cultures in a holder filled with an aqueous solution. The influence of scattering by the culture water and by the walls of the holder was investigated to determine its influence on the dose delivered to the cell culture. MCNPX simulations were run and experimental measurements conducted. The effect of scattering by the holder was found to be negligible; scattering by the culture water was determined to give an increase in dose of the order of 10%
Monte Carlo Simulation of the Conversion X-Rays from the Electron Beam of PFMA-3
No full textPFMA-3, a dense Plasma Focus device, is being optimized as an X-ray generator. X-rays are obtained from the conversion of the electron beam emitted in the backward direction and driven to impinge on a 50 μm brass foil. Monte Carlo simulations of the X-ray emission have been conducted with MCNPX. The electron spectrum had been determined experimentally and is used in the present work as input to the simulations. Dose to the brass foil has been determined both from simulations and from measurements with a thermographic camera, and the two results are found in excellent agreement, thus validating further the electron spectrum assumed as well as the simulation set-up. X-ray emission has been predicted both from bremsstrahlung and from characteristic lines. The spectrum has been found to be comprised of two components of which the one at higher energy, 30÷70 keV, is most useful for IORT applications. The results are necessary to estimate penetration in and dose to Standard Human Tissue
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
MCNP modelling of vaginal and uterine applicators used in intracavitary brachytherapy and comparison with radiochromic film measurements
No full textBrachytherapy is an advanced cancer treatment that is minimally invasive, minimising radiation exposure to the surrounding healthy tissues. Microselectron© Nucletron devices with 192Ir source can be used for gynaecological brachytherapy, in patients with vaginal or uterine cancer. Measurements of isodose curves have been performed in a PMMA phantom and compared with Monte Carlo calculation and TPS (Plato software of Nucletron BPS 14.2) evaluation. The isodose measurements have been performed with radiochromic films (Gafchromic EBT ©). The dose matrix has been obtained after digitalisation and use of a dose calibration curve obtained with a 6MV photon beam provided by a medical linear accelerator. A comparison between the calculated and the measured matrix has been performed. The calculated dose matrix is obtained with a simulation using the MCNP5 Monte Carlo code (F4MESH tally)
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
EBT2 dosimetry of x-rays produced by the electron beam from a Plasma Focus for medical applications
No full textThe electron beam emitted from the back of Plasma Focus devices is being studied as a radiation source for intraoperative radiation therapy applications. A Plasma Focus device is being developed to this aim, to be utilized as an x-ray source. The electron beam is driven to impinge on 50 lm brass foil, where conversion x-rays are generated. Measurements with gafchromic film are performed to analyse the attenuation of the x-rays beam and to predict the dose given to the culture cell in radiobiological experiments to follow
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