Les nouvelles techniques de la radiothérapie (Stéréotaxie, IMRT, VMAT, IGRT...etc) utilisent des faisceaux de photons de très petite taille (mini-faisceaux) dans le cas de petite tumeur, au cerveau par exemple, afin d'irradier précisément la lésion. En effet, leur taille de champ est inférieure à 3cm×3cm à 100 cm de la source de rayonnement, cependant la mesure de la dose dans les mini-faisceaux est caractérisée par de forts gradients de dose et un manque d'équilibre électronique latéral, nécessitant l'utilisation de détecteurs ayant un volume sensible et une résolution spatiale adaptés, avec une équivalence-eau aussi bonne que possible afin d'améliorer la précision de la dose mesurée. Les détecteurs commercialisés ne remplissent parfaitement ces conditions. Actuellement, il n'existe pas de consensus méthodologique international, ni de référence métrologique pour mesurer la dose dans les mini-faisceaux. Le protocole IAEA 398 utilisé pour calculer la dose absorbée dans un faisceau de 10×10 cm², n'est plus approprié pour les mini-faisceaux. Ce travail compare la mesure des données dosimétriques par différents détecteurs conçus pour ce type de faisceau et optimise celui le plus proche de la réalité. En absconse de référence métrologique, la vérification de l'ensemble de la mesure des données dosimétriques est assurée par l'utilisation des films gafchromiques du fait de son excellente résolution spatiale. Cette étude propose une méthode expérimentale pour estimer la dose délivrée en stéréotaxie intracrânienne. Cette méthode est basée sur la mesure de la dose de fuite en un point situé en dehors du champ d'irradiation. / The advanced techniques of radiotherapy use very small fields in case small tumors such as in the brain to irradiate precisely the lesion. This work concerns the measurement absorbed dose in small field of 0.5×0.5cm² to 3×3cm². However, the measurement dose in small fields is characterized by high gradient dose and a leak of lateral electronic equilibrium. That requires use a detector having an adapted sensitive volume and adapted spatial resolution. The detectors marketed are not perfectly compatible with these conditions. Actually, there is no international methodological consensus, nor a metrological reference for measurement dose in small fields. The IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) protocol 398 used to calculate the absorbed dose at 10cm×10cm isn't suitable for small fields. In absence a referenced detector, the dosimetric data measurement is verified using a Gafcromic films due to its excellent spatial resolution. We measure using conventional detectors (ionization chambers and/or Gafcromic film) the leakage dose at a point outside of irradiated field. The dosimetric data such as output factor OF, depth PDD percentage depth dose and dose profile OAR were also carried out by the diode. The correlation between the on-axis dose and off-axis dose is the subject of our study. This study proposes an experimental method to calculate the on-axis dose in small field for stereotactic radiotherapy. The method is based on the out of field leakage measurement. This model can be used to validate dose and output factor measurement. The experimental validation of the present method was performed for square and rectangular fields with sizes ranging from 0.5cm×0.5cm to 10cm×10cm.

Ionization chambers (ICs) are the most commonly used detectors for radiation therapy dose measurements. Typical IC measurements use cylindrical ICs in a water phantom and therefore require initial IC alignment to the water surface. This alignment has long been ignored and only recently has a qualitative governing recommendation been made. This thesis describes a reproducible methodology for quantitative ionization chamber water surface alignment. Depth-ionization measurements are taken with twenty-eight IC designs under varying conditions including, but not limited to, changes in scan direction, speed, and resolution, radiation beam type, field size, energy, and electron contamination. Measurements are acquired using standard radiotherapy accelerators in the Virginia Commonwealth University Department of Radiation Oncology and at the National Research Council of Canada, where a customized scanning system capable of better than 0.15 mm IC positioning precision is used. Measurements are also performed with standard commercial scanning equipment on the Accuray CyberKnife, a specialized radiosurgery-class accelerator. An analytical model is developed from basic principles to test the theoretical foundations of IC response near a water surface. The theoretical foundation is further validated via Monte Carlo simulation models that fully account for all details of the ICs used to take measurements. It is determined that the dose gradient as a function of depth is maximized when a given IC reaches the water surface when moving from depth in water. This effect is unchanged under all of the measurement scenarios tested. Measurements taken at 0.1 mm resolution for several seconds per point over several millimeters near the surface will yield a gradient peak that can be used for quantitative alignment. Using developed software, multiple scans at variant resolutions can be stitched into typical clinical scans so as not to significantly affect clinical measurement workflow. The recommended measurement method is developed in a format suitable for inclusion into a clinical protocol for depth-ionization measurement acquisition.

The traditional radiation testing of space electronics has been used for more than fifty years to support the radiation hardness assurance. Its typical goal is to ensure reliable operation of the spacecraft in the harsh environment of space. This PhD research looks into the radiation testing from a different perspective; the goal is to develop radiation testing methods that are focused not only on the reliability of the components but also on a continuous radiation-induced degradation of their performance. Such data are crucial for the understanding of the impact of radiation on the measurement uncertainty of data acquisition systems onboard research space missions.