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Published on: February 20, 2021
Dosimetry in a mammography phantom using TLD-300 dosimeters
I D Muñoz1, I Gamboa-deBuen2, O Avila3
1Instituto de Física, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, 04510, Mexico City, Mexico.
This study accurately measured mammography beam quality and dose distribution using TLD-300. The thermoluminescent dosimeter (TLD-300) allows simultaneous determination of effective energy and percentage depth-dose (PDD) in phantoms.
Area of Science:
- Medical Physics
- Radiological Dosimetry
- Mammography Quality Assurance
Background:
- Accurate characterization of photon beam quality and dose distribution is crucial for mammography quality assurance.
- Thermoluminescent dosimetry (TLD) using CaF2:Tm (TLD-300) offers a method for in-phantom dosimetry.
- Understanding the energy dependence of dosimeters is essential for accurate dose assessment.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the photon field effective energy (Eeff) distribution and percentage depth-dose (PDD) within a mammography phantom.
- To analyze the thermoluminescent (TL) glow curve of CaF2:Tm (TLD-300) for dosimetry applications.
- To determine if TLD-300 can simultaneously measure relative dose and beam quality.
Main Methods:
- TLD-300 chips were exposed to X-rays from a mammography unit at various depths in a BR12 phantom.
- Glow curves were analyzed to determine the high- to low-temperature ratio (HLTR) for Eeff calculation.
- PDD was established from the TL signal at different depths, with corrections for material differences.
Main Results:
- A 5% change in HLTR corresponded to a 2.2 keV increase in Eeff from surface to 3.5 cm depth.
- An energy-dependent correction factor (β(E)) was necessary due to differences between TLD-300 and breast tissue.
- Measurements showed good agreement with Monte Carlo simulations (mean differences of 0.8 keV for Eeff and 1.2% for PDD).
Conclusions:
- TLD-300 glow curve analysis accurately measures Eeff and PDD within a mammographic phantom.
- This method allows for simultaneous determination of beam quality and dose using a single dosimeter.
- The findings support the use of TLD-300 for mammography quality control and dose assessment.
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