External and internal GATE/Geant4 dosimetric calculations on voxelized phantoms

Area of Science:

• Medical Physics
• Radiation Dosimetry
• Computational Phantoms

Background:

• Monte Carlo simulations are essential for accurate radiation transport and dose calculations in computational phantoms.
• The Geant4 Application for Tomographic Emission (GATE) code is a widely used tool for these simulations.
• Validation of simulation tools against established models and experimental data is critical for reliable results.

Purpose of the Study:

• To calculate absorbed doses in the Zubal computational phantom using the Monte Carlo GATE code (version 9.3).
• To evaluate dose distributions for both external (radiological accident) and internal (radionuclide) exposure scenarios.
• To validate GATE simulation results by comparing them with established Monte Carlo codes (MCNP, EGS4) and ICRP reference phantoms.

Main Methods:

• Utilized the Monte Carlo GATE code (version 9.3) for radiation transport simulations.
• Employed the Zubal computational phantom to model human anatomy.
• Simulated two exposure scenarios: external irradiation and internal irradiation with a specified radionuclide.

Main Results:

• GATE simulations using the Zubal phantom demonstrated good agreement with published absorbed dose data from MCNP and EGS4 codes.
• Results aligned well with absorbed dose calculations using the ICRP 110 reference female computational model for both exposure types.
• Minimal variations were observed between the Zubal and ICRP 110 phantoms, attributable to their distinct anatomical and geometrical characteristics.

Conclusions:

• The Monte Carlo GATE code is a reliable tool for calculating absorbed doses in computational phantoms for various irradiation scenarios.
• The Zubal phantom, when simulated with GATE, provides results consistent with other validated Monte Carlo codes and ICRP reference models.
• This study supports the use of GATE and the Zubal phantom in radiation protection and medical physics research.