We have demonstrated that GaN Schottky diodes can be used for high energy (64.8 MeV) proton detection. Such proton beams are used for tumor treatment, for which accurate and radiation resistant detectors are needed. Schottky diodes have been measured to be highly sensitive to protons, to have a linear response with beam intensity and fast enough for the application. Some photoconductive gain was found in the diode leading to a good compromise between responsivity and response time. The imaging capability of GaN diodes in proton detection is also demonstrated.
The proton energy loss in GaN in an energy range between 0 and 65 MeV is investigated. The energy of protons generated by a cyclotron at about 65 MeV is varied by inserting an energy‐absorbing medium of varying thickness. The precise modeling of the GaN Schottky diode response as a function of the absorbing medium thickness allows us to demonstrate that the energy absorption loss in GaN precisely follows the Bethe theory. In addition, the region of the detector contributing to its response to a proton beam, which is of prime importance for proton detector optimization, can be identified.
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