Characterization of a new low‐dose and low‐energy Gafchromic film LD‐V1.

Purpose: To characterize the dose‐response, energy dependence, postexposure changes, orientation dependence, and spatial capabilities of LD‐V1, a new low‐dose Gafchromic film for low‐energy x‐ray dosimetry. Methods: A single sheet of LD‐V1 Gafchromic film was cut into 15 × 20 mm2 rectangles with a notch to track orientation. Eight different doses between 5 and 320 mGy were delivered by an MXR‐160/22 x‐ray tube using x‐ray beams of 90, 100, and 120 kVp filtered with 3 mm of Al and 2 mm of Ti. The 120 kVp films were scanned at 1, 1.5, 2, 3, 12, 24, 48, 72, and 168 h postexposure in portrait orientation and additionally scanned in landscape orientation at 24 h. The 90 and 100 kVp films were scanned at 24 h postexposure in portrait orientation. Lastly, a 20 × 200 mm2 strip of film was irradiated using a thin‐slit imaging collimator and scanned 24 h postexposure to test the film performance in an x‐ray imaging application. Results: Of the three color channels, the red channel was found to produce a dose‐response curve with a large range of net optical density (netOD) values across the considered dose range. A prominent energy dependence was discovered, resulting in dose discrepancies on the scale of 17 mGy between 90 and 120 kVp for a dose of 80 mGy. The measured postexposure changes suggest that the calibration irradiation‐to‐scan time should be longer than 12 h with a ± 4 h scanning time window for dose errors of <0.5%. An average dose difference of 3.4% was found between the two scanning orientations. Lastly, noise of 4% was measured in the thin slit collimator film for a dose of 30 mGy. Conclusions: We have characterized the LD‐V1 film for low‐energy, low‐dose x‐ray dosimetry. Energy, scan‐time, and orientation dependencies should be considered when using this film. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]