X-ray collimator design using monte carlo simulations

The purpose of this study was to apply Monte Carlo (MC) based simulations to design a new collimation system to achieve a larger beam size (2 ± 0.1 cm) and tight penumbra (< 1 mm) with a kV X-ray small animal irradiator. The BEAMnrc and DOSXYZnrc MC-based programs were adapted to simulate the system. First the aperture of the primary collimator was expanded until the desired size of the beam was obtained. Subsequently, the beam was trimmed by reducing the aperture size of the secondary collimator in order to eliminate low energy scattered photons and sharpen the penumbra. Finally, the new collimator was constructed and the resultant dose distributions were evaluated with EBT2 film measurements. From the MC computed dose profiles, a 2.1 cm FWHM (1.9 cm width at 95% of the dose) and a sharp penumbra (< 1.0 mm) at 1.0 cm depth in water were obtained. Dose distribution comparisons between the EBT2 film measurements and the MC calculations showed acceptable agreement. MC-based calculation is an effective tool to expedite the creation of new collimator designs and avoid costly machining.