title: On the revised concept of linear energy transfer.
abstract: The quantities linear energy transfer or restricted linear energy transfer are utilized in calculations that link absorbed dose to the fluence distribution of a radiation field. The computations provide approximations to absorbed dose in terms of the intermediate quantity cema or reduced cema. With the definition of the restricted linear energy transfer, L delta, given in ICRU Report 33, the approximation remains imperfect. This study deals with the resulting need for a modified definition of L delta, as proposed in a draft report of ICRU. Essential differences between the old and the new definitions are demonstrated. The changed definition permits a rigorous formulation of the dependence between fluence and absorbed dose.
authors.affiliation: Institut für Strahlenbiologie, GSF-Forschungszentrum für Umwelt und Gesundheit, Oberschleissheim, Germany.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Kellerer
authors.forename: H H
authors.initials: HH
authors.lastname: Rossi
mesh_terms: D004307:Dose-Response Relationship, Radiation; D007700:Kinetics; D018499:Linear Energy Transfer; D008961:Models, Structural; D008962:Models, Theoretical