[Simulation question]:Inquiry about TOPAS-nBio Support for HfO2 Nanoparticles in Radiation Sensitization Simulation

[xizhilang123590]

Simulation question

Hello everyone,
I hope this message finds you well. I am currently working on a radiation sensitization simulation involving HfO2 (hafnium dioxide) nanoparticles using TOPAS-nBio. I have a few questions regarding its capabilities and underlying data support, and I would greatly appreciate your insights or experiences.
Specifically, I would like to know:
Does TOPAS-nBio fully support modeling interactions of particles (e.g., photons, electrons) with Hafnium (Hf) metal at the microscopic nanoscale, particularly within the context of nanoparticle radiosensitization?
Are there relevant nuclear reaction cross-sections and other physics data (e.g., for low-energy electrons, Auger processes, or proton interactions) built into TOPAS-nBio or its underlying Geant4-DNA/Geant4 libraries to accurately simulate Hf-based materials? I am aware that such support is well-established for Gold (Au) nanoparticles, but I am unsure if it extends to Hf.
In my tests, using custom material definitions for HfO2 in simulations does not generate errors, but I am uncertain whether the physical models and cross-section databases adequately cover Hf elements for nanoscale energy deposition and radiation enhancement effects.
Could anyone share information or references on how TOPAS-nBio handles Hf and its compounds? Any guidance on validating these simulations or pointers to relevant documentation would be extremely helpful.
Thank you in advance for your time and assistance!
Best regards,

TOPAS-nBio category

Geometry

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[jschuemann]

Hi,
in short, no.
There are no detailed Hafnium cross sections. You can use standard physics lists and reduce the range and threshold cuts to get someone close, but you'll miss the low energy part. There is a Geant4 paper implementing gold cross sections for nanoscale simulations, that paper can give you an idea of what differences you can expect from standard physics (Livermore or other) to DNA physics lists.