Refine
Document Type
- Article (1)
- Conference Proceeding (1)
Institute
Language
- English (2)
Has Fulltext
- yes (2)
Is part of the Bibliography
- yes (2)
Keywords
- FLASH effect (1)
- FLASHlab@PITZ (1)
- electron beams (1)
- ultra-high dose rate (1)
Objective. The photo injector test facility at DESY in Zeuthen (PITZ) is building up an R&D platform, known as FLASHlab@PITZ, for systematically studying the FLASH effect in cancer treatment with its high-brightness electron beams, which can provide a uniquely large dose parameter range for radiation experiments. In this paper, we demonstrate the capabilities by experiments with a reduced parameter range on a startup beamline and study the potential performance of the full beamline by simulations. Approach. To measure the dose, Gafchromic films are installed both in front of and after the samples; Monte Carlo simulations are conducted to predict the dose distribution during beam preparation and help understand the dose distribution inside the sample. Plasmid DNA is irradiated under various doses at conventional and ultra-high dose rate (UHDR) to study the DNA damage by radiations. Start-to-end simulations are performed to verify the performance of the full beamline. Main results. On the startup beamline, reproducible irradiation has been established with optimized electron beams and the delivered dose distributions have been measured with Gafchromic films and compared to FLUKA simulations. The functionality of this setup has been further demonstrated in biochemical experiments at conventional dose rate of 0.05 Gy s−1 and UHDR of several 105 Gy s−1 and a varying dose up to 60 Gy, with the UHDR experiments finished within a single RF pulse (less than 1 millisecond); the observed conformation yields of the irradiated plasmid DNA revealed its dose-dependent radiation damage. The upgrade to the full FLASHlab@PITZ beamline is justified by simulations with homogeneous radiation fields generated by both pencil beam scanning and scattering beams. Significance. With the demonstration of UHDR irradiation and the simulated performance of the new beamline, FLASHlab@PITZ will serve as a powerful platform for studying the FLASH effects in cancer treatment.
Development of an accelerator-based tunable THz source prototype for pump-probe experiments at the European XFEL is ongoing at the Photo Injector Test facility at DESY in Zeuthen (PITZ). The proof-of-principle experiments on the THz SASE FEL are performed utilizing the LCLS-I undulator installed in the PITZ beamline. The first lasing at a center wavelength of 100 µm was observed in the summer of 2022. The lasing of the narrowband THz source was achieved using an electron beam with an energy of ~17 MeV and a bunch charge up to several nC. Optimization of beam transport and matching resulted in the measurement of THz radiation with a pulse energy of tens of µJ, measured with pyroelectric detectors. The THz FEL gain curves were measured by means of specially designed short coils along the undulator. The results of the first characterization of the THz source at PITZ will be presented.

