Microdosimetric Spectra Measurements on a Clinical Carbon Beam at Nominal Therapeutic Fluence Rate With Silicon Cylindrical Microdosimeters

The use of protons and heavy ions for the treatment of tumors is increasing since it provides a better relative biological effectiveness (RBE) than traditional radiotherapy. Accurate knowledge of the energy deposition at submicrometric scales is paramount for RBE characterization. This paper shows the latest version of the silicon cylindrical microdosimeter array developed by the Instituto de Microelectrónica de Barcelona, Centro Nacional de Microelectrónica (IMB-CNM, Spain). The detector consists of a matrix of 11 × 11 cylindrical sensitive unit cells with individual readout etched within the silicon substrate available in different diameters and pitches between detectors. The detector employed in this paper had a diameter of 15 μm, a pitch of 200 μm, and a thickness of 5.5 μm. The detectors were tested in the clinical facilities of Fondazione Centro Nazionale di Adronterapia Oncologica (CNAO) (Pavia, Italy) employing a 12C pencil beam at a therapeutic beam fluence rate. Microdosimetric spectra of lineal energy were measured in different depths of polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) up to the Bragg peak. Results were then compared with Monte Carlo simulations using the FLUKA particle transport code, showing an excellent agreement between experimental and simulated microdosimetric distributions even at the high fluence rates associated with clinical beams.