Measurement of Proton Beam Generated β+ Radioactivity by Use of All-digital PET Detectors

One key issue in proton beam therapy is to ensure precise delivery of the concentrated radiation dose to the target. A promising method that is under active study and development is the use of position emission tomography (PET) for range verification or monitoring. In this work, we test the use of a digital PET system developed on the basis of a Plug-and-Imaging architecture for a proton therapy system. We analyze technical features of the proposed PET technology and experimentally demonstrate the possibility to imaging positron decays in a phantom immediately after proton irradiation. The experiment results agree with the expectation according to the physical properties of proton beam interaction with hydrocarbons.