Characterization of CVD diamond detector with FLASH electron beam from modified LINAC accelerator

FLASH Radiotherapy (RT) delivers an average dose-rate >40 Gy/s in less than 200 ms with extremely high instantaneous dose-rates, and preclinical studies demonstrated a tumoricidal effect comparable to conventional RT with an increased sparing effect on healthy tissues (FLASH effect). Within the INFN-FRIDA project, we are exploring thin silicon sensors and polycrystalline CVD diamond (pCVD) sensors as real-time beam monitors for electron and proton FLASH beams. Planar silicon sensors were first tested on conventional electron beams and subsequently on high-dose electron beams (ElectronFLASH machine, funded by the Pisa Foundation). Diamond, due to some of its properties including radiation resistance, could also be a viable alternative for monitoring FLASH beams. The first tests were carried out in Turin, and the sensor response was studied in terms of polarization voltage, integrated charge, charge collection efficiency and sensitivity.