An algorithm for real-time dosimetry in intensity-modulated radiation therapy using the radioluminescence signal from Al₂O₃:C

Although the radioluminescence (RL) signal from optical fibre Al2O3:C dosemeters used in medical applications is essentially proportional to dose rate, the crystals used so far are imperfect in the sense that their RL sensitivity changes with accumulated dose. A computational algorithm has been developed that corrects for these sensitivity changes.

We further report on a new system that effectively separates the RL signal generated in the crystal from fluorescence and Cerenkov emission generated in the optical fibre cable using a gating technique in connection with pulsed linear accelerator radiation beams. The dosimetry system has been used for dose measurements in a phantom during an intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) treatment with 6 MV photons.

The RL measurement results are in excellent agreement (i.e. within 1%) with both the OSL results and the dose delivered according to the treatment planning system. RL signals from Al2O3:C can be used for real-time dose rate measurements with a time resolution of similar to 0.1 s and a spatial resolution only limited by the size of the detector (< 0.5 mm).