Accuracy of the photon and electron physics in GEANT4 for radiotherapy applications
- 25 May 2005
- journal article
- Published by Wiley in Medical Physics
- Vol. 32 (6Part1), 1696-1711
- https://doi.org/10.1118/1.1895796
Abstract
This work involves a validation of the photon and electron transport of the GEANT4 particle simulation toolkit for radiotherapy physics applications. We examine the cross sections and sampling algorithms of the three electromagnetic physics models in version 4.6.1 of the toolkit: Standard, Low-energy, and Penelope. The depth dose distributions in water for incident monoenergetic and clinical beams are compared to the EGSNRC results. In photon beam simulations, all three models agree with EGSNRC to within 2%, except for the buildup region. Larger deviations are found for incident electron beams, and the differences are affected by user-imposed electron step limitations. Particle distributions through thin layers of clinical target materials, and perturbation effects near high- Z and low- Z interfaces are also investigated. The electron step size artifacts observed in our studies indicate potential problems with the condensed history algorithm. A careful selection of physics processes and transport parameters is needed for optimum efficiency and accuracy.Keywords
Funding Information
- Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council RGPIN (288219)
This publication has 57 references indexed in Scilit:
- Monte Carlo simulations with time-dependent geometries to investigate effects of organ motion with high temporal resolutionInternational Journal of Radiation Oncology*Biology*Physics, 2004
- Adaptation of GEANT4 to Monte Carlo dose calculations based on CT dataMedical Physics, 2004
- GATE: a simulation toolkit for PET and SPECTPhysics in Medicine & Biology, 2004
- Phantom size in brachytherapy source dosimetric studiesMedical Physics, 2004
- Accurate Monte Carlo simulations for nozzle design, commissioning and quality assurance for a proton radiation therapy facilityMedical Physics, 2004
- Four-dimensional Monte Carlo simulation of time-dependent geometriesPhysics in Medicine & Biology, 2004
- Monte Carlo dosimetric characterization of the Cs-137 selectron/LDR source: Evaluation of applicator attenuation and superposition approximation effectsMedical Physics, 2004
- Test of GEANT3 and GEANT4 nuclear models for 160 MeV protons stopping inMedical Physics, 2003
- Geant4—a simulation toolkitNuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section A: Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors and Associated Equipment, 2003
- Relative biological effectiveness enhancement of a 125I brachytherapy seed with characteristic x rays from its constitutive materialsMedical Physics, 2002