Fundamental of dosimetry

Teacher(s)

Sterpin Edmond;

Language

English

Main themes

A. INTRODUCTION - Definition of absorbed dose, KERMA and CEMA - Different types of ionizing beams used in radiotherapy B. INTERACTIONS WITH MATTER - Charged particles - Photons. - Neutrons. C. INTEGRATING DOSIMETRY DETECTORS - Calibration chain for dosimetry detectors - Calorimetry - Ionization Chambers. - Thermoluminescence. - Films. - Diodes. - Chemical dosimetry D. DETERMINATION OF THE ABSORBED DOSE IN A CLINICAL BEAM UNDER REFERENCE CONDITIONS - Calibration of an ion chamber in terms of Air-KERMA - Calibration of an ion chamber in terms of absorbed dose in water - Dosimetry recommendations based on Air-Kerma standards based on absorbed dose in water - Determination of the absorbed dose under non-reference conditions - Dosimetry audits E. INTRODUCTION TO RADIOTHERAPY TECHNIQUES

Content

This teaching unit consists in acquiring the theoretical principles of radiation dosimetry. The goal is to develop an intuition about dosimetry from basic principles, as a strong foundation before studying the applications of radiation dosimetry in the other courses for radiotherapy, nuclear medicine, and radiology. 
The course is organized around 5 main themes:
1. The interactions of particles with matter from the point of view of the medical physicist 
2. Field and dosimetric quantities. Concept of charged-particle equilibrium
3. Characterization of radiation quality
4. Cavity theory
5. Radiation detectors from a medical physicist's perspective
 

Teaching methods

The course is given as a mix of teaching lectures and hands-on exercices done in class. 
All courses are given in hybrid mode (physical and remote). The location of the physical lectures is yet to be determined, but it will be either in Woluwe campus of UCLouvain or in the Gasthuisberg campus of KU Leuven

Evaluation methods

The assessment is done entirely on the day of the exam. This consists of a written part and an oral part. The written part is done with open notebook and accounts for 70%. It consists of a theoretical part and exercises. The oral part (closed notebook) accounts for 30%.
Exam material is constituted exclusively from the slides and the teaching lectures

Other information

The language of the lectures and all materials is ENGLISH

Online resources

All slideshows and most appendices are on Moodle

Bibliography

• Handbook of Radiotherapy Physics (Mayles, Nahum, Rosenwald)

• Fundamentals of Ionizing Radiation Dosimetry by Andreo et al, 2017 edition. 

Teaching materials

• Tous les transparents disponibles sur moodle et dispensés lors des cours magistraux

Faculty or entity

MED