Design of a Detector Electronics System for Feedback Control of Proton Beam Intensity in the LLUMC Proton Medical Accelerator
- Sponsor
- Optivus Technology, Inc.
- Year
- 1999 – 2000
- Advisors
- Richard Campbell Haskell
- Samuel (Sam) Tanenbaum
Optivus Technology uses a proton accelerator as a radiation source for treating cancer patients. The current method of attacking tumors with the proton beam has been successful, but Optivus would like to improve the treatment by using a raster-scanning technique, requiring a much tighter control on the beam intensity. Our goal is to develop an improved electronics system to process the output of a beam intensity detector, allowing a feedback loop to control the beam at a much higher bandwidth.
The Physics Clinic program presents opportunities for students to work on practical projects relevant to industrial work. Students work on teams of 3–5 on a sponsored research or development project.