Experimental Validation of Low-Intensity Beam Extraction Mode for Proton Imaging at the Prometheus Synchrotron

The work is devoted to the dosimetric studies of a low-intensity beam for the implementation of proton radiography on the proton therapy complex Prometeus. In contrast to therapy, radiography using proton beams requires low particle fluxes, less than 1 × 10 6 protons/(s cm 2 ). The controlled uniform extraction of beams of such intensity at therapeutic accelerators is a significant challenge, and it requires the development of innovative approaches. This study is part of a series of studies on the Russian medical proton synchrotron for implementing the extraction of low-intensity beams. The paper presents data on the key parameter of the extracted beam—the absorbed dose—when performing radiographic plans with a scanning beam. It also provides a quantitative analysis based on computer simulation of the spatial characteristics of proton images obtained using the extracted beam parameters.