Protons against cancer: New research beamline for innovative radiotherapies
Prof. Dr Judith Reindl and PhD student Aikaterini Rousseti (from left to right) from the University of the Bundeswehr Munich present the experimental station for biological samples which is installed at the new Minibee beamline at HZB. © Kevin Fuchs / HZB
Magnetic quadrupoles focus the proton beam in front of the experiment platform. © Kevin Fuchs / HZB
Together with the University of the Bundeswehr Munich, the HZB has set up a new beamline for preclinical research. It will enable experiments on biological samples on innovative radiation therapies with protons.
The proton accelerator at the Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin (HZB) has been used for about 25 years to combat certain types of eye tumours. So far, over 4800 people have benefited from proton eye tumour therapy, which is carried out in collaboration with Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin.
Now, the proton accelerator at HZB also offers the option of conducting preclinical research: A mini-beamline for preclinical experiments (Minibee) has been set up for this purpose together with the University of the Bundeswehr in Munich. The HZB's Proton Therapy Department has built the beam guidance and control system for the minibeams. The University of the Bundeswehr in Munich, with Prof. Judith Reindl from the Institute of Applied Physics and Measurement Technology and the Section of Biomedical Radiation Physics, installed a platform for image-guided irradiation of biological samples. This will enable joint experiments on radiobiology and innovative radiation therapy in the future.
‘At Minibee, we can use medical research to investigate how changes in parameters and settings of the proton beam affect the treatment,’ says Judith Reindl. Among other things, Minibee is designed to generate ultrashort proton flashes (FLASH therapy) or needle-fine radiation (beamlets). ‘Our aim is to develop new methods that effectively destroy tumours while providing even better protection for healthy tissue,’ says Prof. Dr. Andrea Denker, head of the Department of Proton Therapy at HZB.
- Spintronics at BESSY II: Real-time analysis of magnetic bilayer systemsSpintronic devices enable data processing with significantly lower energy consumption. They are based on the interaction between ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic layers. Now, a team from Freie Universität Berlin, HZB and Uppsala University has succeeded in tracking, for each layer separately, how the magnetic order changes after a short laser pulse has excited the system. They were also able to identify the main cause of the loss of antiferromagnetic order in the oxide layer: the excitation is transported from the hot electrons in the ferromagnetic metal to the spins in the antiferromagnet.
- Electrocatalysts: New model for charge separation at the solid-liquid interfaceHydrogen is at the heart of the transition to carbon neutrality, as both an energy carrier and a reagent for green chemistry. However, large-scale production of hydrogen via electrolysis, as well as the production of many other chemical products, requires significantly cheaper and more efficient catalysts. A precise understanding of the electrochemical processes that take place at the interface between the solid catalyst and the liquid medium is highly useful for developing better electrocatalysts. In the journal Nature Communications, an European team has now presented a powerful model that determines charge separation at the interface, the formation of the electric double layer and local electric potential variations, and the resulting influence on the catalytic activity.
- Theory meets practice – We’re heading back to HTW Berlin!The HZB’s BIPV consultancy office (BAIP) is once again coordinating and delivering the lecture series “Building-Integrated Photovoltaics”.