Embodiments of systems, devices, and methods relate to fast beam position monitoring for detecting beam misalignment in a beam line. In an example, a fast beam position monitor includes a plurality of electrodes extending into an interior of a component of a beam line. The fast beam position monitor is configured to detect a position of a beam passing through the component of the beam line based on beam halo current. Embodiments of systems, devices, and methods further relate to noninvasively monitoring parameters of beams advancing along a beam line. In examples, gas is puffed into a pumping chamber along a beam line. One or more beam parameters are measured from fluorescence resulting from collisions of energetic beam particulates of a beam advancing through the beam line.

The invention comprises a method and apparatus for scanning charged particles in a cancer therapy system, comprising the steps of: (1) providing a first and second dipole magnet system and a gap, the gap comprising a common gap length, along a path of the charged particles, within both the first and second dipole magnet systems, the gap comprising a progressively increasing x/y-plane cross-section area from an entrance area of the charged particles into the double dipole magnet system to an exit area of the double dipole magnet system, the x/y-plane perpendicular to a z-axis from a center of the entrance area to a center of the exit area; (2) scanning the positively charged particles along a first axis of the x/y-plane using the first dipole magnet system; and (3) scanning the positively charged particles along a second axis of the x/y-plane using the second dipole magnet system.

In a circular accelerator that applies a radiofrequency wave in a main magnetic field to accelerate charged particle beam while increasing an orbit radius, another radiofrequency wave with a frequency different from the radiofrequency wave used for acceleration is applied to the charged particle beam in order to extract the charged particle beam. Thereby, in the circular accelerator that accelerates charged particle beam while increasing an orbit radius by applying a radiofrequency wave in a main magnetic field, the high precision control on extraction of the charged particle beam from the circular accelerator is achieved.

The invention relates to a neutron source, containing a first proton accelerator for producing a first proton beam having a first energy and a first target for producing a first neutron beam, which first target is connected to the first proton accelerator by a first beam trajectory, and at least one first neutron beam channel serving for guiding the protons exiting the first target, characterised by a second proton accelerator for producing a higher, second energy proton beam from the first proton beam, which second proton accelerator is linked to the first proton accelerator by a second proton accelerator, furthermore the first beam trajectory and the second beam trajectory contain a proton beam deflector arranged on a common section, set up to convey the proton beam along the first beam trajectory to the first target in a first operation state, and along the second beam trajectory to the second proton accelerator in a second operation state, and contain a second target for producing a second neutron beam, which second target is linked to the second proton accelerator by a third beam trajectory. In a similar way the neutron source is also conceivable with a third or even more accelerators and targets.

A radiation treatment apparatus includes an accelerator that emits a charged particle beam, a time measurement unit that measures an emission time of the charged particle beam of the accelerator, a first control unit that controls the accelerator based on the emission time measured by the time measurement unit, and an emission determination unit that determines whether or not the accelerator is emitting the charged particle beam while the first control unit is controlling the accelerator. The time measurement unit adds a time, for which a result of a determination performed by the emission determination unit is that the accelerator is emitting the charged particle beam, to the emission time and does not add a time, for which the result of the determination performed by the emission determination unit is that the accelerator is not emitting the charged particle beam, to the emission time.

A particle beam therapy device that irradiates a patient with a cation beam to perform treatment, the device including a passage selection unit that selectively passes through the cation beam among a mixed beam in which the cation beam and other species of a beam having a nuclide different from that of the cation beam are mixed after passing through a deflection magnetic field, after causing the mixed beam to pass through the deflection magnetic field, in a case where the other species of the beam is generated from the cation beam.

The present invention relates to a superconducting electromagnet apparatus having a group of superconducting electromagnets including a first superconducting electromagnet and a second superconducting electromagnet arranged adjacent to the first superconducting electromagnet. Effective magnetic field regions generated by the first and second superconducting electromagnets, respectively, are formed to satisfy predetermined relational equations.

A gantry-less particle therapy system is provided. Charged particles are extracted from an ion source and accelerated in a beam transport system having an annular portion extending in a first plane and that circumscribes a volume, an arcuate portion extending in a second plane, and a transition portion that connects the annular portion and the arcuate portion. The arcuate portion terminates at a beam nozzle extending radially inward from the annular portion to deliver an ion beam to a treatment area contained in the volume circumscribed by the annular portion.

A control method for an accelerator according to the present embodiment is a control method for an accelerator that supplies a current generating a magnetic field to a plurality of deflection electromagnets based on a current-value instruction signal. The method includes providing a flat region that makes a current value of the deflection electromagnet constant in a case of an acceleration cycle involving emission of the charged particles, not providing the flat region in the current-value instruction signal in a case of an acceleration cycle, smoothing time change of a current value in a transition of the current value to the flat region or a transition from the flat region, and determining a time required for the smoothing based on a predetermined energy for extracting the charged particles or a difference between energies before and after change to the predetermined extraction energy.

A proton therapy system based on a compact superconducting cyclotron, including: a superconducting cyclotron system, an energy selection system, a beam transport system, a fixed therapy room subsystem and a rotating frame therapy subsystem; a fixed-energy proton beam extracted from a superconducting cyclotron of the superconducting cyclotron system is adjusted into a continuous and adjustable proton beam of 70 MeV to 200 MeV by the energy selection system, thus realizing a longitudinal adjustment for a proton range during treating a tumor, and the continuous and adjustable proton beam is respectively transmitted to the fixed therapy room subsystem and the rotating frame therapy subsystem by the beam transport system. The cooperative control of the superconducting cyclotron system, the energy selection system, the beam transport system and the therapy head realizes the transverse expansion of proton beams, thus realizing intensity modulated radiation therapy for the tumor.