Experimental validation of LET in intensity-modulated proton therapy with a miniaturized pixel detector

Objective. This study addresses the need for experimental validation of linear energy transfer (LET) in proton therapy by presenting a methodology and results for LET spectra measurements using a miniaturized Timepix3 pixel detector. Approach. LET was measured in spread-out Bragg peak (SOBP) and IMPT fields using homogeneous and heterogeneous phantoms. A GPU-accelerated Monte Carlo (MC) simulation was used for validation. Main results. Experimental results showed good agreement with MC simulations, with a mean relative difference in dose-averaged LET of ~5.1%. Significance. This validates the feasibility of using the Timepix3 detector for LET-based patient-specific quality assurance (PSQA) in proton therapy, supporting future clinical implementation of LET optimization in treatment planning.

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