The effect of scattering foil parameters on electron-beam Monte Carlo calculations

The sensitivity of electron-beam Monte Carlo dose calculations to scattering foil geometrical parameters is described. A method for resolving discrepancies between Monte Carlo calculation and measured data in a systematic manner is also described. As part of a project to investigate the utility of Monte Carlo methods for calculating data required for commissioning electron beams, a large discrepancy between measured and calculated 20 MeV cross-beam profiles for the largest field size was found. It was hypothesized that the discrepancy was due to incorrect input data and that better agreement between calculation and measurement could be achieved with small changes in the scattering foil system geometry. Four parameters describing the foil system were varied individually until better agreement between calculation and measurement was achieved, and the percentage change in the parameter was tabulated as an indication of the sensitivity of the model to that parameter. The accelerator model for the 20 MeV electron beam was most sensitive to the distance between the scattering foils and to a slightly lesser extent, to the width of the shaped secondary scattering foil. Changes to the primary or secondary foil thickness also significantly modified the falloff and bremsstrahlung component of depth dose, which was unacceptable for the present case. Therefore, the distance between the two scattering foils was changed in our calculations, which the manufacturer later confirmed was indeed the case. For 6 and 12 MeV electron beams, the change was not nearly as significant. It was concluded that Monte Carlo calculations for higher-energy beams and larger field sizes are most sensitive to the geometric configuration of the scattering foil system and should therefore be calculated first to help verify the accuracy of the geometric information. (C) 2001 American Association of Physicists in Medicine.