Enhancement of radiation effects by bismuth oxide nanoparticles for kilovoltage x-ray beams: A dosimetric study using a novel multi-compartment 3D radiochromic dosimeter

Abstract

The aim of this study is to present the first experimental validation and quantification of the dose enhancement capability of bismuth oxide nanoparticles (Bi2O3-Nps). A recently introduced multi-compartment 3D radiochromic dosimeter for measuring radiation dose enhancement produced from the interaction of X-rays with metal nanoparticles was employed to investigate the 3D spatial distribution of ionizing radiation dose deposition. Dose-enhancement factor for the dosimeters doped with Bi2O 3-NPs was ∼1.9 for both spectrophotometry and optical CT analyses. Our results suggest that bismuth-based nanomaterials are efficient dose enhancing agents and have great potential for application in clinical radiotherapy.