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Title: 2009-2010 Program Review Physics.
Creator: Florida Atlantic University, Department of Physics, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science
Abstract/Description: Florida Atlantic University Departmental Dashboard Indicators. Department program reviews for Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Florida Atlantic University.
Date Issued: 2009-2010
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00007677
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: 2010-2011 Program Review Physics.
Creator: Florida Atlantic University, Department of Physics, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science
Abstract/Description: Florida Atlantic University Departmental Dashboard Indicators. Department program reviews for Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Florida Atlantic University.
Date Issued: 2010-2011
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00007684
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: 2012-2013 Program Review Physics.
Creator: Florida Atlantic University, Department of Physics, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science
Abstract/Description: Florida Atlantic University Departmental Dashboard Indicators. Department program reviews for Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Florida Atlantic University.
Date Issued: 2012-2013
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00007691
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: 2013-2014 Program Review Physics.
Creator: Florida Atlantic University, Department of Physics, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science
Abstract/Description: Florida Atlantic University Departmental Dashboard Indicators. Department program reviews for Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Florida Atlantic University.
Date Issued: 2013-2014
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00007698
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: 2014-2015 Program Review Physics.
Creator: Florida Atlantic University, Department of Physics, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science
Abstract/Description: Florida Atlantic University Departmental Dashboard Indicators. Department program reviews for Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Florida Atlantic University.
Date Issued: 2014-2015
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00007705
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: 2015-2016 Program Review Physics.
Creator: Florida Atlantic University, Department of Physics, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science
Abstract/Description: Florida Atlantic University Departmental Dashboard Indicators. Department program reviews for Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Florida Atlantic University.
Date Issued: 2015-2016
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00007712
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: 2016-2017 Program Review Physics.
Creator: Florida Atlantic University, Department of Physics, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science
Abstract/Description: Florida Atlantic University Departmental Dashboard Indicators. Department program reviews for Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Florida Atlantic University.
Date Issued: 2016-2017
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00007719
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: A Computational Study on Different Penalty Approaches for Constrained Optimization in Radiation Therapy Treatment Planning with a Simulated Annealing Algorithm.
Creator: Mohammadi Khoroushadi, Mohammad Sadegh, Kalantzis, Georgios, Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Physics
Abstract/Description: Intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) is a cancer treatment method in which the intensities of the radiation beams are modulated; therefore these beams have non-uniform radiation intensities. The overall result is the delivery of the prescribed dose in the target volume. The dose distribution is conformal to the shape of the target and minimizes the dose to the nearby critical organs. An inverse planning algorithm is used to obtain those non-uniform beam intensities. In inverse...
Show moreIntensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) is a cancer treatment method in which the intensities of the radiation beams are modulated; therefore these beams have non-uniform radiation intensities. The overall result is the delivery of the prescribed dose in the target volume. The dose distribution is conformal to the shape of the target and minimizes the dose to the nearby critical organs. An inverse planning algorithm is used to obtain those non-uniform beam intensities. In inverse treatment planning, the treatment plan is achieved by using an optimization process. The optimized plan results to a high-quality dose distribution in the planning target volume (PTV), which receives the prescribed dose while the dose that is received by the organs at risk (OARs) is reduced. Accordingly, an objective function has to be defined for the PTV, while some constraints have to be considered to handle the dose limitations for the OARs.
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Date Issued: 2016
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004765
Subject Headings: Image-guided radiation therapy., Radiation--Dosage., Mathematical optimization., Evolutionary programming (Computer science), Medical physics., Medical radiology--Data processing.
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: A Dosimetric Comparison of 3D-CRT, IMRT, and SAVI HDR via NTCP/TCP and DVH Analysis of Critical Organs for Breast Cancer.
Creator: Wisnoskie, Sarah, Pella, Silvia, Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Physics
Abstract/Description: Accelerated Partial Breast Irradiation (APBI) is a common treatment of breast cancer with many modalities including 3D Conformal Radiation Therapy (3D-CRT), Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT), and High Dose Rate Brachytherapy (HDR). In this research, a retrospective analysis of patient’s data was performed to analyze the NTCP/TCP (Normal Tissue Complication Probability/Tumor Control Probability) and Dose Volume Histogram (DVH) parameters for HDR with SAVI, 3D, and IMRT and compare...
Show moreAccelerated Partial Breast Irradiation (APBI) is a common treatment of breast cancer with many modalities including 3D Conformal Radiation Therapy (3D-CRT), Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT), and High Dose Rate Brachytherapy (HDR). In this research, a retrospective analysis of patient’s data was performed to analyze the NTCP/TCP (Normal Tissue Complication Probability/Tumor Control Probability) and Dose Volume Histogram (DVH) parameters for HDR with SAVI, 3D, and IMRT and compare them focusing on critical organs such as the heart, ipsilateral lung, chest wall, ribs, and skin. TCP was 90.275%, 55.948%, and 53.369% for HDR, 3D, and IMRT respectively. The ribs were the most sensitive critical organ for all 3 modalities with a mean NTCP of 8%, 15%, and 8% for HDR, 3D, and IMRT respectively. DVH analysis showed HDR spares critical organs more than EBRT except for 2 patients receiving high doses to the ribs and chest wall.
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Date Issued: 2019
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00013281
Subject Headings: Radiation dosimetry--Evaluation, Breast--Cancer--Treatment, Organs, Tissues--Effect of radiation on
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: A dosimetric study of a heterogeneous phantom for lung stereotactic body radiation therapy comparing Monte Carlo and pencil beam calculations to dose distributions measured with a 2-d diode array.
Creator: Curley, Casey Michael, Ouhib, Zoubir, Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Physics
Abstract/Description: Monte Carlo (MC) and Pencil Beam (PB) calculations are compared to their measured planar dose distributions using a 2-D diode array for lung Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy (SBRT). The planar dose distributions were studied for two different phantom types: an in-house heterogeneous phantom and a homogeneous phantom. The motivation is to mimic the human anatomy during a lung SBRT treatment and incorporate heterogeneities into the pre-treatment Quality Assurance process, where measured and...
Show moreMonte Carlo (MC) and Pencil Beam (PB) calculations are compared to their measured planar dose distributions using a 2-D diode array for lung Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy (SBRT). The planar dose distributions were studied for two different phantom types: an in-house heterogeneous phantom and a homogeneous phantom. The motivation is to mimic the human anatomy during a lung SBRT treatment and incorporate heterogeneities into the pre-treatment Quality Assurance process, where measured and calculated planar dose distributions are compared before the radiation treatment. Individual and combined field dosimetry has been performed for both fixed gantry angle (anterior to posterior) and planned gantry angle delivery. A gamma analysis has been performed for all beam arrangements. The measurements were obtained using the 2-D diode array MapCHECK 2™.
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Date Issued: 2015
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004360
Subject Headings: Cancer -- Radiotherapy, Drug development -- Computer simulation, Image guided radiation therapy, Ion bombardment, Lung cancer -- Treatment, Medical physics, Monte Carlo method, Proton beams
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: A GPU- BASED SIMULATED ANNEALING ALGORITHM FOR INTENSITY-MODULATED RADIATION THERAPY.
Creator: Galanakou, Panagiota, Leventouri, Theodora, Florida Atlantic University, Department of Physics, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science
Abstract/Description: Simulating Annealing Algorithm (SAA) has been proposed for optimization of the Intensity-Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT). Despite the advantage of the SAA to be a global optimizer, the SAA optimization of IMRT is an extensive computational task due to the large scale of the optimization variables, and therefore it requires significant computational resources. In this research we introduce a parallel graphics processing unit (GPU)-based SAA developed in MATLAB platform and compliant with...
Show moreSimulating Annealing Algorithm (SAA) has been proposed for optimization of the Intensity-Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT). Despite the advantage of the SAA to be a global optimizer, the SAA optimization of IMRT is an extensive computational task due to the large scale of the optimization variables, and therefore it requires significant computational resources. In this research we introduce a parallel graphics processing unit (GPU)-based SAA developed in MATLAB platform and compliant with the computational environment for radiotherapy research (CERR) for IMRT treatment planning in order elucidate the performance improvement of the SAA in IMRT optimization. First, we identify the “bottlenecks” of our code, and then we parallelize those on the GPU accordingly. Performance tests were conducted on four different GPU cards in comparison to a serial version of the algorithm executed on a CPU. A gradual increase of the speedup factor as a function of the number of beamlets was found for all four GPUs. A maximum speedup factor of 33.48 was achieved for a prostate case, and 30.51 for a lung cancer case when the K40m card and the maximum number of beams was utilized for each case. At the same time, the two optimized IMRT plans that were created (prostate and lung cancer plans) were met the IMRT optimization goals.
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Date Issued: 2019
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00013372
Subject Headings: Radiotherapy, Intensity-Modulated, Annealing algorithm, Simulated annealing (Mathematics), Graphics processing units
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: A novel method to evaluate local control of lung cancer in stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) treatment using 18f-Fdg positron emission tomography (PET).
Creator: Kathriarachchi, Vindu, Shang, Charles, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Physics
Abstract/Description: An improved method is introduced for prediction of local tumor control following lung stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) for early stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients using 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (18F-FDG PET). A normalized background-corrected tumor maximum Standard Uptake Value (SUVcmax) is introduced using the mean uptake of adjacent aorta (SUVref), instead of the maximum uptake of lung tumor (SUVmax). This method minimizes the variations...
Show moreAn improved method is introduced for prediction of local tumor control following lung stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) for early stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients using 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (18F-FDG PET). A normalized background-corrected tumor maximum Standard Uptake Value (SUVcmax) is introduced using the mean uptake of adjacent aorta (SUVref), instead of the maximum uptake of lung tumor (SUVmax). This method minimizes the variations associated with SUVmax and objectively demonstrates a strong correlation between the low SUVcmax (< 2.5-3.0) and local control of post lung SBRT. The false positive rates of both SUVmax and SUVcmax increase with inclusion of early (<6 months) PET scans, therefore such inclusion is not recommended for assessing local tumor control of post lung SBRT.
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Date Issued: 2013
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA0004029
Subject Headings: Cancer -- Radiotherapy, Image guided radiation therapy, Lung cancer -- Treatment, Radiopharmaceuticals, Tomography, Emission
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Analysis of fluid instabilities in core collapse supernova progenitors by a semi-analytical methodology and by two dimensional radiation-hydrodynamical simulations.
Creator: Raley, Elizabeth Anne, Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Physics
Abstract/Description: We have performed an analysis of fluid instabilities below the neutrinospheres of the collapsed cores of supernova progenitors using a methodology introduced by Bruenn and Dineva [28, 29, 31]. In an extensive survey we found that the rate of lepton diffusion always exceeds the rate of thermal diffusion and as a result we do not anywhere see the neutron finger instability as described by the Livermore group [16, 17]. A new instability, lepto-entropy fingers, extending from a radius of 10--15...
Show moreWe have performed an analysis of fluid instabilities below the neutrinospheres of the collapsed cores of supernova progenitors using a methodology introduced by Bruenn and Dineva [28, 29, 31]. In an extensive survey we found that the rate of lepton diffusion always exceeds the rate of thermal diffusion and as a result we do not anywhere see the neutron finger instability as described by the Livermore group [16, 17]. A new instability, lepto-entropy fingers, extending from a radius of 10--15 km out to the vicinity of the neutrinosphere, driven by the cross-response functions (i.e. the dependence of lepton transport on entropy perturbations and vice versa) was discovered. This instability has a maximum growth rate of the order of 100 s-1 with a scale of approximately 1/20 the distance of a perturbed fluid element from the core center [18]. This instability has probably already been seen in some multi-dimensional core collapse calculations. To test our results predicting the presence of doubly diffusive instabilities below the neutrinosphere of a proto-supernova, we have performed two dimensional hydrodynamic simulations with radial ray neutrino transport. This entailed rewriting RadHyd, which is the merger of EVH-1 hydrodynamics and MGFLD neutrino transport developed by Bruenn and DiNisco [43], for two dimensions. In particular, hydrodynamic evolution along angular arrays was included, as was MPI message passing capabilities, in order to utilize massively parallel computer platform such as FAU's BOCA4 Beowulf cluster. This work was partially funded by a grant from the DOE Office of Science, Scientific Discovery through Advanced Computing Program.
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Date Issued: 2004
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/12094
Subject Headings: Physics, Astronomy and Astrophysics
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Anisotropic physical properties of SC-15 epoxy reinforced with magnetic nanofillers under uniform magnetic field.
Creator: Malkina, Olga, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Physics
Abstract/Description: SC-15 epoxy is used in many industrial applications and it is well known that the mechanical and viscoelastic properties of epoxy can be signicantly enhanced when reinforced with nanofillers. In this work, SC-15 epoxy is reinforced by loading with magnetically-active nanofillers and cured in a modest magnetic field. Because of the signicant magnetic response of the nanofillers, this is a low cost and relatively easy technique for imposing a strong magnetic anisotropy to the system without the...
Show moreSC-15 epoxy is used in many industrial applications and it is well known that the mechanical and viscoelastic properties of epoxy can be signicantly enhanced when reinforced with nanofillers. In this work, SC-15 epoxy is reinforced by loading with magnetically-active nanofillers and cured in a modest magnetic field. Because of the signicant magnetic response of the nanofillers, this is a low cost and relatively easy technique for imposing a strong magnetic anisotropy to the system without the need of a superconducting magnet. It is also found that this method is an effective way of enhancing the mechanical properties of epoxy. Three systems were prepared and studied. The first is a dilute system of various concentrations of Fe2O3 nanoparticles in SC-15 epoxy. The second system is a combination of Fe2O3 nanoparticles and chemically-functionalized single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNT(COOH)s) in SC-15 epoxy. The third is a dilute system of SWCNT(COOH)s decorated with Fe3O4 particles t hrough a sonochemical oxidation process in SC-15 epoxy. Samples have an initial cure of 6 hrs in a magnetic led of 10 kOe followed by an additional 24 hours of post curing at room temperature. These are compared to the control samples that do not have initial field curing. Tensile and compressive stress-strain analysis of the prepared systems shows that mechanical properties such as tensile strength, tensile modulus and compressive strength are enhanced with the inclusion of these nanofillers. It is also found that there is an anisotropic enhancement of these properties with respect to the imposed curing field. An interesting phenomenon is observed with the increase in modulus of toughness and fracture strain with nanotube inclusion., These parameters are drastically enhanced after curing the systems in a magnetic field. While there is a modest shift in glass transition temperature during viscoelastic analysis, the thermal stability of the created systems is not compromised. Results of these mechanical enhancements will be compared with other nanoloading techniques from literature.
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Date Issued: 2011
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/3332722
Subject Headings: Nanostructured materials, Epoxy resins, Composite materials, Design
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Atomic displacements in transition metals.
Creator: Moghadam, Nassrin Y., Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Physics
Abstract/Description: Using the order-N locally-self-consistent multiple scattering (LSMS) method, we carry out first-principles studies of the displacement of atoms from their average sites in the vicinity of a vacancy and transition metal impurities in copper. Our approach is to relax the first nearest neighbor distance and to calculate total energy for a number of relaxed geometries. We then obtain the equilibrium configuration of the nuclei from minimization of the total energy.
Date Issued: 1998
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/12546
Subject Headings: Physics, Condensed Matter
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Binary black hole mergers: alternatives to standard puncture initial data and the impact on gravitational waveforms.
Creator: Reifenberger, George C., Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Physics
Abstract/Description: We study the evolution of binary black hole initial data schemes as alternatives to the standard puncture construction. These alternatives are based on post-Newtonian expansions that contain realistic gravitational waves. The first scheme is based on a second order post-Newtonian expansion in Arnowitt, Deser, and Misner transverse-traceless (ADMTT) gauge that has been re-summed to approach standard puncture data at the black holes. The other schemes are based on asymptotic matching of the 4...
Show moreWe study the evolution of binary black hole initial data schemes as alternatives to the standard puncture construction. These alternatives are based on post-Newtonian expansions that contain realistic gravitational waves. The first scheme is based on a second order post-Newtonian expansion in Arnowitt, Deser, and Misner transverse-traceless (ADMTT) gauge that has been re-summed to approach standard puncture data at the black holes. The other schemes are based on asymptotic matching of the 4-metrics of two tidally perturbed Schwarzschild solutions to post-Newtonian expansions at different orders. The alternatives are encouraging and lead to quasi-circular orbits and show gravitational radiation from the onset, as well as a reduction of spurious radiation. Deficiencies compared to punctures include more eccentricity during inspiral and larger constraint violations, since the alternative data sets only approximate solutions of Einstein's equations.
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Date Issued: 2013
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/3362577
Subject Headings: Black holes (Astronomy), General relativity (Physics), Gravitational waves, Inertia (Mechanics), Mass (Physics), Particles (Nuclear physics)
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Binary neutron star mergeres: simulations with arbitrarily spinning stars.
Creator: Tsatsin, Petr, Marronetti, Pedro, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Physics
Abstract/Description: The starting point of any general relativistic numerical simulation is a solution of the Hamiltonian and momentum constraints that (ideally) represents an astrophysically realistic scenario. This dissertation presents a new method to produce initial data sets for binary neutron stars with arbitrary spins and orbital eccentricities. The method only provides approximate solutions to the constraints. However, it was shown that the corresponding constraint violations subside after a few orbits,...
Show moreThe starting point of any general relativistic numerical simulation is a solution of the Hamiltonian and momentum constraints that (ideally) represents an astrophysically realistic scenario. This dissertation presents a new method to produce initial data sets for binary neutron stars with arbitrary spins and orbital eccentricities. The method only provides approximate solutions to the constraints. However, it was shown that the corresponding constraint violations subside after a few orbits, becoming comparable to those found in evolutions of standard conformally flat, helically symmetric binary initial data. This dissertation presents the first spinning neutron star binary simulations in circular orbits with a orbital eccentricity less then 0.01. The initial data sets corresponding to binaries with spins aligned, zero and anti-aligned with the orbital angular momentum were evolved in time. These simulations show the orbital “hang-up” effect previously seen in binary black holes. Additionally, they show orbital eccentricities that can be up to one order of magnitude smaller than those found in helically symmetric initial sets evolutions.
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Date Issued: 2013
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA0004067
Subject Headings: Astrophysics, Black holes (Astronomy), General relativity (Physics), Gravitational waves, Neutron stars, Particles (Nuclear physics)
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Biogenic gas dynamics in peat soil blocks using ground penetrating radar: a comparative study in the laboratory between peat soils from the Everglades and from two northern peatlands in Minnesota and Maine.
Creator: Cabolova, Anastasija., Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Physics
Abstract/Description: Peatlands cover a total area of approximately 3 million square kilometers and are one of the largest natural sources of atmospheric methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2). Most traditional methods used to estimate biogenic gas dynamics are invasive and provide little or no information about lateral distribution of gas. In contrast, Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) is an emerging technique for non-invasive investigation of gas dynamics in peat soils. This thesis establishes a direct comparison...
Show morePeatlands cover a total area of approximately 3 million square kilometers and are one of the largest natural sources of atmospheric methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2). Most traditional methods used to estimate biogenic gas dynamics are invasive and provide little or no information about lateral distribution of gas. In contrast, Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) is an emerging technique for non-invasive investigation of gas dynamics in peat soils. This thesis establishes a direct comparison between gas dynamics (i.e. build-up and release) of four different types of peat soil using GPR. Peat soil blocks were collected at peatlands with contrasting latitudes, including the Everglades, Maine and Minnesota. A unique two-antenna GPR setup was used to monitor biogenic gas buildup and ebullition events over a period of 4.5 months, constraining GPR data with surface deformation measurements and direct CH4 and CO2 concentration measurements. The effect of atmospheric pressure was also investigated. This study has implications for better understanding global gas dynamics and carbon cycling in peat soils and its role in climate change.
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Date Issued: 2010
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/2974433
Subject Headings: Wetland ecology, Wetland ecology, Wetland ecology, Gas dynamics, Soil permeability, Ground penetrating radar, Porous materials, Fluid dynamics
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Central Moments of Squeezed States: A Coincidence Statistics Analogue.
Creator: Tison, Christopher C., Miller, Warner A., Alsing, Paul M., Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Physics
Abstract/Description: As a subset of quantum optics, single photons are one of the competing physical resources for quantum information processing. When used as carriers of quantum information, they have no equal. For the processing of quantum information, single photons have proven difficult to scale beyond the order of ⇠ 10 photons. The lack of single-photon-level interaction has led to creative approaches which rely on postselection to filter the possible measured outcomes to those which appear as though...
Show moreAs a subset of quantum optics, single photons are one of the competing physical resources for quantum information processing. When used as carriers of quantum information, they have no equal. For the processing of quantum information, single photons have proven difficult to scale beyond the order of ⇠ 10 photons. The lack of single-photon-level interaction has led to creative approaches which rely on postselection to filter the possible measured outcomes to those which appear as though interaction occurred. This approach of post-selection leans heavily on the ability to not only generate but also detect scores of single photons simultaneously and with near perfect efficiency. Our work relaxes the emphasis which has been placed on single photons for quantum information processing to that of states with, in principle, an arbitrary number of photons. Central moment expectations on two-mode squeezed states are shown to exhibit post-selection behavior which reflects the single-photon counterpart. These measures are proven to be robust to loss and return entangled state statistics on average. With naive estimation of the central moment, states with ~ 20 modes are within reach with current technology, closing the gap between quantum states which can and cannot be classically simulated.
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Date Issued: 2018
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00005951
Subject Headings: Squeezed states (Optics), Quantum optics, Photons, Integrated optics
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: A characterization of the LAP Aquarius Phantom for external LAP laser alignment and magnetic resonance geometric distortion verification for stereotactic radiation surgery patient simulation.
Creator: Vergara, Daniel, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Physics
Abstract/Description: The Thesis explores additional applications of LAP's Aquarius external laser alignment verification Phantom by examining geometric accuracy of magnetic resonance images commonly used for planning intracranial stereotactic radiation surgery (ICSRS) cases. The scans were performed with MRI protocols used for ICSRS, and head and neck diagnosis, and their images fused to computerized tomographic (CT) images. The geometric distortions (GDs) were measured against the CT in all axial, sagittal, and...
Show moreThe Thesis explores additional applications of LAP's Aquarius external laser alignment verification Phantom by examining geometric accuracy of magnetic resonance images commonly used for planning intracranial stereotactic radiation surgery (ICSRS) cases. The scans were performed with MRI protocols used for ICSRS, and head and neck diagnosis, and their images fused to computerized tomographic (CT) images. The geometric distortions (GDs) were measured against the CT in all axial, sagittal, and coronal directions at different levels. Using the Aquarius Phantom, one is able to detect GD in ICSRS planning MRI acquisitions, and align the external LAP patient alignment lasers, by following the LAP QA protocol. GDs up to about 2 mm are observed at the distal regions of the longitudinal axis in the SRS treatment planning MR images. Based on the results, one may recommend the use of the Aquarius Phantom to determine if margins should be included for SRS treatment planning.
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Date Issued: 2012
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/3352878
Subject Headings: Radiotherapy, Techniques, Medical physics, Imaging systems in medicine, Tomographic images, Computerized axial tomography
Format: Document (PDF)

Current FAU Student Theses and Dissertations 2007 to date (73)	+ -
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