Monte Carlo calculations of electrons impinging on a copper target: A comparison of EGSnrc, Geant4 and MCNP5

John Paul Archambault

doi:10.1016/j.apradiso.2017.11.023

Monte Carlo calculations of electrons impinging on a copper target: A comparison of EGSnrc, Geant4 and MCNP5

Appl Radiat Isot. 2018 Feb:132:129-134. doi: 10.1016/j.apradiso.2017.11.023. Epub 2017 Nov 27.

Author

John Paul Archambault¹

Affiliation

¹ National Research Council Canada, 1200 Montreal Road, Ottawa ON, Canada K1A 0R6. Electronic address: JohnPaul.Archambault@nrc-cnrc.gc.ca.

PMID: 29220726
DOI: 10.1016/j.apradiso.2017.11.023

Abstract

A simple geometry is used to compare several of the available Monte Carlo software codes for radiation transport. EGSnrc, Geant4 and MCNP5 are all used to calculate the photon fluence produced from electrons incident on a copper target. Four energies for the isotropic point source are chosen to simulate the average and maximum emission energies of ³²P and ⁹⁰Y: (0.7, 1.71)MeV and (0.93, 2.28)MeV, respectively. The energy deposition in the copper target, the electron current at the target and the computational efficiency are also calculated. EGSnrc is found to be the only self-consistent code when comparing results calculated using the default transport parameters of the condensed history mode with those calculated in the single scattering mode.

Keywords: Bremsstrahlung; Copper target; Electrons; Monte Carlo.