Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research A 580 (2007) 537539

Evaluation of commercial silicon diode for electron dosimetry

H.J. Khoury
a,
, H. Schelin
b
, D. Soboll
b
, N. Lunelli
b
, C. Baptista
b
a
Nuclear Energy Department, UFPE, Av. Prof. Luiz Freire, 1000 50740-000 Brazil
b
Federal University of Technology Parana, UTFPR, Av. Sete de Setembro, 3165, 80230-901 Curitiba, Brazil
Available online 24 May 2007
Abstract
Ionization chambers have been widely used as the reference detector for measurements of photon and electron beams. However,
advances in silicon planar technology have allowed the use of silicon diodes in spectrometry and dosimetry of radiations. The aim of this
study is to evaluate the response of a PIN silicon diode for electron dosimetry. The diode selected for this study is a planar-processed
silicon diode XRA-50. Its active area is 25 mm
2
and it is characterized by a low leakage current and a low terminal capacitance of 14 pF
for reverse voltage of 30 V. The results showed a linear dose response of the diode for 4, 9, and 15 MV electron beam energies, with a
determined coefcient of 0.99997. The results of the depth dose curves measured with the diode showed a good agreement with the ones
obtained with the ionization chamber. The difference is lower than 2%. These results demonstrate that the XRA-50 is suitable for
electron dosimetry.
r 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
PACS: 87.53.F, H
Keywords: Electron dosimetry; Semiconductor dosimeters; Photodiode; Radiotherapy
1. Introduction
The use of semiconductor detectors is increasing in
radiotherapy practice for small-eld photon dosimetry and
for in vivo dosimetry [1]. The main advantages presented
by these detectors are their dimensions and high sensitivity
to ionizing radiation. In fact, the current produced by
silicon dosimeters may be over 10
4
times higher than the
current produced in ionization chambers when both are
submitted to the same radiation eld [2]. The silicon diodes
are often applied when high spatial resolution is required,
due to their small sensitive volume.
However, although they are now well established for the
dosimetry of photon beams [3], only a limited number of
publications studied their use for electron beam [4]. This is
probably due to the dosimetric problems encountered in
certain diode models. The aim of this study is to evaluate
the response of a PIN silicon diode for electron dosimetry.
2. Materials and method
The diode selected for this study is a planar-processed
silicon diode XRA-50. Its active area is 25mm
2
and it is
characterized by a low leakage current and a low terminal
capacitance of 14pF for reverse voltage of 30V. The diode
was encapsulated in a polymer plastic and covered by a thin
plastic layer. The diode was connected in the photovoltaic
mode to the input of an integrating electrometer, Standard
Imaging model CDX 2000A, which has a range from 0.01 to
999,999.99nC and a leakage current of 10
15
A at STP.
During all measurements, the diode was held xed in a
depression at the center of a 1 cm thick 30 cm30 cm
PMMA plate, in such a way that the diode surface was
leveled with the surface of the plate. Electron beams of 4, 9,
and 15 MV from a Clinac 2100-C electron accelerator
(Varian Medical Systems) were used for the detector
irradiation. The accelerator output was checked with a
parallel plate ionization chamber (Markus) coupled to an
electrometer.
To determine the doseresponse curve, the plate contain-
ing the diode was positioned on a PMMA plate of
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doi:10.1016/j.nima.2007.05.224

Corresponding author. Tel.: +55 81 2126 8708; fax: +55 81 2126 8708.
E-mail address: hjkhoury@globo.com (H.J. Khoury).
30 cm30 cm10 cm and covered by a Lucite plate with
the appropriate thickness, for the electron beams energy, to
provide buildup. Measurements were performed with the
sensor positioned at the center of a 15 cm15 cm eld size
and with the phantom surface at 100 cm from the source.
The response of the diode was also evaluated for
different dose rates, ranging from 80 to 240 cGy/min.
To determine depth dose percentage, the plate contain-
ing the diode was placed in the center of the electron beam,
over a phantom made of PMMA plates of variable
thickness. The measurements were made by varying the
depth of the plate containing the diode between 0
(phantom surface) and 5 cm, using a 15 cm15 cm cone.
The percentage dose at a given depth was calculated as
ratio of the reading at that point and the reading at the
point of maximum dose.
3. Results and discussion
Fig. 1 shows the photodiode response for doses in the
range of 20120 cGy. The response of the photodiode was
not studied for doses lower than 20 cGy as these doses are
not used in radiotherapy. A least square tting of the
experimental data indicated an excellent linear behavior in
this interval, with a determination coefcient of 0.99998.
Table 1 shows the results obtained with the diode for the
monitor unit set in 50 and different values of the dose rates.
The data show that, for the three electron energies, the
diode response is independent from the dose rate and the
variation in its response is lower than 2%.
Fig. 2 shows the results of the measurements carried out
with the diode XRA-50 in terms of the percent depth dose
at the center axis for the 15 cm15 cm cone for 4 and
9 MV electron beams. The depth is expressed in terms of
millimeters of water, calculated by taking into account the
densities of Lucite and water itself.
The mean energy of the electrons at the phantom surface
(E
0
), the mean range and the half-value depth (R
50
) were
estimated from the graphics of Fig. 2. The value of E
0
was
obtained through the relationship E
0
C.R
50
, where
the constant C is equal to 2.33 MeVcm
1
for water [5].
The mean range of electrons (R
p
) was calculated by
extrapolation of the dose depth percentage curve for the
eld of 15 cm15 cm. Table 2 shows the results obtained.
The results are compared with the values previously
obtained by the radiotherapy clinics, with the ionization
chamber. The results show that the values obtained with
the diode XRA-50 agree with the values obtained with the
ionization chamber.
4. Conclusions
The results indicate the linearity of the commercial diode
XRA-50 doseresponse curve, obtained with 4, 9, and
ARTICLE IN PRESS
Fig. 1. Doseresponse curves of XRA-50 for 4, 9, and 15 MV electron
beam.
Table 1
Response of the diode XRA-50 in function of the dose rates for the beam
energy of 4, 9, and 15 MV
Electron beam (MV) Dose rate (cGy/min)
80 160 240 S
a
%CV
4 2098 2118 2041 40.1 1.9
9 2086 2093 2074 9.6 0.46
15 1945 1900 1924 22.5 1.2
The monitor unite was set in 50.
a
S, standard deviation.
Fig. 2. Depth dose data obtained with XRA-50 at the central axis for the
15 cm15 cm cone eld of 4 and 9 MV electron beam.
Table 2
Mean range, mean electron energy at the phantom surface, and half-value
depth range obtained with the XRA 50 and electron beam from 4 and
9 MV
Beam energy
(MV)
Diode
XRA-50
Ionization
chamber
4 Mean range (water cm) 1.65 1.80
Mean energy E
0
(MeV) 2.80 3.0
R
50
(cm) 1.2 1.3
9 Mean range (water cm) 4.3 4.5
Mean energy E
0
(MeV) 8.3 8.4
R
50
(cm) 3.6 3.8
H.J. Khoury et al. / Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research A 580 (2007) 537539 538
15 MV electron beam. The agreement between the data
obtained with the diode and the ionization chamber shows
that the use of the XRA-50 is a reliable method for electron
beam dosimetry.
Acknowledgments
The authors would like to acknowledge the nancial
support received from the Brazilian National Research
Council (CNPq) and the Erasto Gaertner Hospital.
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H.J. Khoury et al. / Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research A 580 (2007) 537539 539