Study of fluence and dose spatial distributions in phantoms with various shapes exposed to epithermal neutrons for NCT

The various dose components generated by epithermal neutron beams in tissue-equivalent materials have different spatial distributions that also depend on the size and volume of the irradiated volume. NCT dosimetry requires the separate determination of dose components having different LET, because of their different RBE. Monte Carlo simulations have been developed concerning the absorbed doses and thermal neutron fluences, to investigate the extent of the differences that may occur by changing the shape and size of the irradiated volumes. Moreover, the doses and fluences that occur if specific isotopes (10B, 14N, 157Gd) are added to water have been evaluated.