Applied Radiation Corporation

Siemens Medical Laboratories, Inc.

Siemens Aktiengesellschaft

Leonhard Taumann

Rudolf Schittenhelm

Edgar B Symmons

Eberhard Stock

Lothar Heinz

The chamber contains a first and a second measuring electrode and a third electrode. The first measuring electrode is essentially a first flat ring portion. The second measuring electrode comprises an inner circular area to the periphery of which a second flat ring portion adjoins in an electrically conducting manner. The first and the second measuring electrodes are arranged in a first plane. The first and the second ring portion are combined approximately 360.degree.. The third electrode is arranged in a second plane parallel to and spaced from the first plane. When ionizing radiation (X-rays, electrons) enters the space between the first and second measuring electrodes on the one side and the third electrode on the other side, electrical signals will be derived from said respective first and second electrode.

Dose monitor chamber for electron or X-ray radiation

The invention relates to a radio therapy apparatus comprising an electron accelerator having a target and a collimator for limiting the X-ray cone. In the use of such electron accelerators, the radiation load of the patient is increased in an undesirable manner by neutrons in addition to the therapeutically desired roentgen quanta. To reduce the neutron level the invention provides that the edge zone of the collimator facing the target is made of a material of low effective cross-section for (gamma, n) processes. The dimension of this edge zone material approximately corresponds to the half-value depth of the X radiation in this material.

Electron accelerator and target with collimator

The invention relates to an electron accelerator including an evacuated acceleration tube, a target exposed to the electron beam, an electron absorber following the target in beam direction, a collimator and a compensation body arranged therein centered on the axis of symmetry thereof. In such electron accelerators, used in radiotherapy, the soft radiation component is to be suppressed as much as possible. To this end the invention provides a filter plate made of heavy metal beyond the electron absorber, while the compensation body is made of a material of comparatively low atomic number. The filter plate may be inserted between the electron absorber and the compensation body. The target may be provided on the side of the electron absorber facing the acceleration tube.

Radiation filter

In the illustrated embodiment, an electron collimator is to be mounted on the accessory holder of an electron accelerator. In radiation therapy, the down beam end of the applicator is to contact the patient to establish a precise spacing of the electron source therefrom. The legs of the L-shaped collimator plates have rods secured to the corner part thereof which link pairs of overlapping legs to a common carrier for joint lateral adjustment toward and away from the beam axis. The rods slide in apertures in the carrier as the legs are adjusted longitudinally. Cornered wall elements are secured to each collimator plate and overlap each other to surround the beam path, and have in-turned closely overlapping edges which terminate flush with the inner margins of the collimator plates so as to provide further electron collimation and to provide an essentially smooth patient contacting end face.

Electron applicator

In order to supply a dose rate which is as constant as possible over the cross section of the x-ray cone for radiation therapy, especially at lesser tissue depths (e.g. 3 cm), the surfaces of the collimator which define the margin of the x-ray cone are roughened for example by means of grooves transverse to the radiation direction, the grooves having semicircular or step-shaped cross sectional configuration, and advantageously being formed in a thin walled sleeve of low atomic number.

Electron accelerator comprising a target exposed to the electron beam

A beam defining system for an electron accelerator has an adjustable collimator with an accessory holder attached thereto for retaining an electron applicator. The electron applicator has an applicator wall which encloses an electron beam cone from the collimator. A frame-shaped spacer which can be brought into contact with the patient is attached to the applicator wall. A frame-shaped limiting aperture additional to limiting members in the collimator are provided on the applicator wall in order to limit the electron-beam cone at marginal regions facing away from the beam defining system.

Beam defining system in an electron accelerator

In an electron accelerator having a target which is subjected to an electron beam for the production of deceleration radiation, a collimator is provided behind the target which has a passageway adapted to receive a beam cone of maximum dimensions. Adjustable x-ray aperture plates are provided behind the collimator and an electron absorber is provided behind the target. An additional electron absorber is positioned in a widened portion at one end of the passageway in the collimator. Both electron absorbers are made of a material having a relatively low atomic number as compared with electron absorbers of the prior art.

Electron accelerator with a target exposed to the electron beam

In an electron accelerator having a target which is exposed to an electron beam for the production of x-ray deceleration radiation, a conical compensating member is arranged centrally within a cone pattern of the x-ray radiation. The compensating member has a decreasing conical shape toward the target and merges into a cylinder portion. Beam paths within the cylinder portion which are additional to those in a conventional purely conical compensating member are compensated by a recess positioned in a base of the compensating member having an appropriately selected depth. In another embodiment, a conically shaped compensating member is arranged within the cone-shaped x-ray pattern such that a tip of the compensating member is aligned away from the target and a base is aligned toward the target. A collimator having a conical passageway surrounding the x-ray radiation has a groove for receiving the base of the compensating member so as to mount the same within the conical passageway of the collimator.

X-ray beam compensation

An arrangement is provided for scattering electrons in an electron accelerator capable of variable acceleration energies. The arrangement has two scattering foils arranged at a mutual spacing from one another along a direction of an electron beam. A first scattering foil in the beam direction has a constant thickness whereas a second scattering foil has a thickness which decreases from its center towards its margin. The first scattering foil comprises a set of foils each of which have a scattering capability which corresponds to a selectable acceleration energy. The appropriate member of the set is selected and placed in the beam as the first scattering foil so as to create a relatively constant intensity of radiation over a given volume. The second scattering foil, which is of a more costly and complex construction, remains unchanged in the electron beam.

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Lafayette, CA, United States of America

Leonhard Taumann