Published June 2003 | Version v1
Journal article

Incorporation of a combinatorial geometry package and improved scoring capabilities in the EGSnrc Monte Carlo Code system

  • 1. Medical Physics Unit, McGill University, Cedar Avenue 1650, H3G1A4 Montreal, Quebec (Canada)
  • 2. Department of Radiation Oncology, Fox Chase Cancer Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19111 (United States)
  • 3. Joint Department of Physics, The Royal Marsden NHS Trust and Institute of Cancer Research, Fulham Road, London SW3 6JJ (United Kingdom)

Description

A description is given of a generic EGSnrc Monte Carlo user code, GenUC, which was developed as an attempt to simplify and optimize the geometry and scoring coding of EGSnrc user codes. GenUC was developed using the methodology of combinatorial geometry that allows a straightforward implementation of complicated geometric setups with intersecting boundaries, where subsequent modifications to the geometry are easily performed. Presently, GenUC has five elemental volumes that can be defined in any position in space: spheres, ellipsoids, parallelepipeds, and circular cylinders and cones. The mortran macro-based implementation of the combinatorial geometry package allows an easy definition/extension of any other elemental volume, e.g., elliptical cylinders and cones. The scoring of the relevant parameters and the output of the results in GenUC are performed with two CERN data analysis packages, which permit the generation of nonplanar phase space distribution files and can also be used for geometry verification, among many other capabilities. GenUC has been successfully applied to complex geometric setups, e.g., intracavitary brachytherapy applicators and was also benchmarked against the EGSnrc user code, DOSRZnrc

Additional details

Identifiers

Publishing Information

Journal Title
Medical Physics
Journal Volume
30
Journal Issue
6
Journal Page Range
p. 1076-1085
ISSN
0094-2405
CODEN
MPHYA6

INIS

Country of Publication
United States
Country of Input or Organization
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)
INIS RN
35024337
Subject category
S61: RADIATION PROTECTION AND DOSIMETRY; S62: RADIOLOGY AND NUCLEAR MEDICINE;
Descriptors DEI
BRACHYTHERAPY; DATA ANALYSIS; DOSIMETRY; GRAPH THEORY; MONTE CARLO METHOD; RADIATION SOURCE IMPLANTS; RADIOTHERAPY
Descriptors DEC
CALCULATION METHODS; IMPLANTS; MATHEMATICS; MEDICINE; NUCLEAR MEDICINE; RADIATION SOURCES; RADIOLOGY; RADIOTHERAPY; THERAPY

Optional Information

Notes
(c) 2003 American Association of Physicists in Medicine.