Accelerator-Based Boron Neutron Capture Therapy and the Development of a Dedicated Tandem-Electrostatic-Quadrupole
- Departamento de Fisica, Comision Nacional de Energia Atomica, Av. Gral. Paz 1499, San Martin, Buenos Aires, 1650 (Argentina)
There is a generalized perception that the availability of suitable particle accelerators installed in hospitals, as neutron sources, may be crucial for the advancement of Boron Neutron Capture Therapy (BNCT). Progress on an ongoing project to develop a Tandem-ElectroStatic-Quadrupole (TESQ) accelerator for Accelerator-Based (AB)-BNCT is described here. The project goal is a machine capable of delivering 30 mA of 2.5 MeV protons to be used in conjunction with a neutron production target based on the {sup 7}Li(p,n){sup 7}Be reaction slightly beyond its resonance at 2.25 MeV. A folded tandem, with 1.25 MV terminal voltage, combined with an ESQ chain is being designed and constructed. A 30 mA proton beam of 2.5 MeV are the specifications needed to produce sufficiently intense and clean epithermal neutron beams, based on the {sup 7}Li(p,n){sup 7}Be reaction, to perform BNCT treatment for deep-seated tumors in less than an hour. The first design and construction of an ESQ module is discussed and its electrostatic fields are investigated theoretically and experimentally. Also new beam transport calculations through the accelerator are presented.
- OSTI ID:
- 21036027
- Journal Information:
- AIP Conference Proceedings, Journal Name: AIP Conference Proceedings Journal Issue: 1 Vol. 947; ISSN APCPCS; ISSN 0094-243X
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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