title: A slit method to determine the focal spot size and shape of TomoTherapy system.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To obtain accurate x-ray source profile measurements using a slit-collimator, the slit-collimator should have a narrow width, large height, and be positioned near the source. However, these conditions may not always be met. In this paper, the authors provide a detailed analysis of the slit measurement geometry and the relationship between the slit parameters and the measured x-ray source profile. The slit model allows the use of a shorter and more easily available slit-collimator, while accurate source profile measurements can still be obtained.
  
  
  METHODS
  Measurements were performed with a variety of slit widths and/or slit to source distances. The relationship derived between the slit parameters and the measured profile was used to determine the true focal spot profile through a least square fit of the profile data. The model was verified by comparing the predicted profiles at a variety of slit-collimator parameters with the measured results on the TomoTherapy Hi-Art system.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Both the treatment beam and the imaging beam were measured. For treatment mode, it was found that a source consisting of one Gaussian with a 0.75 mm full-width-half-maximum (FWHM) and 72% peak amplitude and a second Gaussian with a 2.27 mm FWHM and 18% peak amplitude matched measurement profiles. The overall source profile has a FWHM of 0.93 mm, but with a higher amplitude in the tail region than a single Gaussian. For imaging mode, the source consists of one Gaussian with a 0.68 mm FWHM and 82% peak amplitude and a second Gaussian with a 1.83 mm FWHM and 18% peak amplitude. The overall source profile has a FWHM of 0.77 mm.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our study of the focal spot measurement using slit-collimators showed that accurate source profile measurements can be achieved through fitting of measurement results at different slit widths and source-to-slit distances (SSD). Quantitative measurements of the TomoTherapy linac focal spot showed that the source distribution could be better described with a model consisting of two Gaussian components rather than a single Gaussian model as assumed in previous studies.
authors.affiliation: TomoTherapy, Inc., 1240 Deming Way, Madison, Wisconsin 53717, USA. quanchen@gmail.com
authors.forename: Quan
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Yu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Mingli
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Edward
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Chao
authors.forename: Edmond
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Sterpin
authors.forename: Weiguo
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Lu
mesh_terms: D009010:Monte Carlo Method; D016011:Normal Distribution; D011881:Radiotherapy, Computer-Assisted / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*