The Medical and Laser Physics Group of Infn-Lns

The Medical and Laser Physics Group of Infn-Lns Laser and Medical Physics group of -LNS laboratory

08/08/2026

🏥Si è insediato stamani, nella sede della direzione generale della nostra Azienda, l’Organo di Indirizzo, appena costituito con delibera del direttore generale, Giorgio Giulio Santonocito.

🎓Presenti, oltre al direttore Santonocito, il Rettore dell’Università di Catania, Enrico Foti, la direttrice amministrativa dell’Azienda, Monica Castro, e il direttore sanitario, Antonio Lazzara.

👨‍💼Quattro i componenti dell’organo collegiale. Si tratta del chirurgo vascolare Vittorio Virgilio, designato presidente, del commercialista Daniele Virgillito, designato dall’Assessorato alla Salute, del dirigente dell’Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare Giacomo Cuttone, designato dal Rettore, e del presidente della Scuola di Medicina dell’Università Giuseppe Barbagallo, componente di diritto.
🔬👨‍⚕️👩‍🏫 L’Organo di indirizzo esercita le competenze previste dall’art. 4, comma 4 del decreto legislativo 517/1999 e dall’art. 6 del protocollo d’intesa tra Regione Siciliana e Università degli Studi di Catania. Tra i suoi compiti, quello di promuovere iniziative e misure finalizzate a garantire la coerenza tra programmazione assistenziale, attività didattica e ricerca scientifica, e di verifica della corretta attuazione.

“L’insediamento dell’Organo di Indirizzo rappresenta un momento di particolare importanza per la nostra Azienda, poiché rafforza l’integrazione tra assistenza, didattica e ricerca che caratterizza l’identità del Policlinico “G. Rodolico – San Marco”. Sono certo che l’elevato profilo professionale e accademico dei componenti contribuirà a orientare, con competenza e visione strategica, le scelte dell’Azienda nel pieno rispetto delle funzioni attribuite dalla normativa. Rivolgoun sincero augurio di buon lavoro al presidente Vittorio Virgilio e a tutti i componenti dell’Organo di Indirizzo”.

ricerca

02/08/2026

Alcuni/e nostri/e Dottorandi/e in mandano tanti saluti dalla XIII Geant4 School, Prague 2026 🍀 🇨🇿

29/07/2026

Exploring particle physics at ELI!

This week, ELI Beamlines is hosting the XIII International Geant4 School in Dolní Břežany, bringing together 50 PhD students, postdocs, and early-career researchers from around the world.

Through lectures and hands-on sessions, participants are developing practical skills in Geant4 simulations for applications in high-energy, medical, space, and laser-plasma physics.

Many thanks to all instructors, organizers, and participants for an inspiring week!

Organized jointly by:
🤝 INFN – Laboratori Nazionali del Sud
🤝 ELI ERIC
🤝 COST Action CA21128 PROBONO

🇨🇿

Objevujeme částicovou fyziku v ELI!

Tento týden hostí ELI Beamlines v Dolních Břežanech XIII. ročník mezinárodní školy Geant4, která přivítala 50 doktorandů, postdoktorandů a mladých vědců z celého světa.

Účastníci si během přednášek i praktických workshopů osvojují práci se simulačním nástrojem Geant4 pro využití ve vysokoenergetické, lékařské, vesmírné i laserově-plazmové fyzice.

Děkujeme všem lektorům, organizátorům i účastníkům za skvělý týden!

Akci společně pořádají:
🤝 INFN – Laboratori Nazionali del Sud
🤝 ELI ERIC
🤝 COST Action CA21128 PROBONO

🔔 New Publication Alert!🥳 We are thrilled to announce our latest paper, "Numerical investigation of laser wakefield acce...
29/07/2026

🔔 New Publication Alert!

🥳 We are thrilled to announce our latest paper, "Numerical investigation of laser wakefield acceleration in gas-filled capillaries at the I-LUCE facility," now published in Physics Scripta!

✍🏻 S. Arjmand, A. Sciuto, and G. A. P. Cirrone

🔬In this study, we designed and numerically characterized a laser wakefield acceleration (LWFA) stage for the I-LUCE facility. Using a high-power 320 TW laser, we modeled plasma discharge inside a 30 mm gas-filled capillary and simulated electron beam dynamics. Our results show that this setup can efficiently guide the laser pulse and produce high-energy electron beams in the 46–86 MeV range with charges up to 499 pC—perfectly suited for future radiotherapy applications using very high-energy electron (VHEE) beams.

✨ This work establishes a solid baseline for the upcoming experimental commissioning at I-LUCE and opens the door to multidisciplinary applications, from cancer therapy to advanced fusion research.

🎉 Big congrats to the laser and plasma team of the I-LUCE!

📄 Read the full paper here: �DOI: https://doi.org/10.1088/1402-4896/ae8be0

🔔 New Publication Alert!We are pleased to share a new publication from the Medical and Laser Physics Group of LNS–INFN, ...
08/07/2026

🔔 New Publication Alert!

We are pleased to share a new publication from the Medical and Laser Physics Group of LNS–INFN, in collaboration with Università degli Studi di Napoli “Federico II”, Università della Campania “L. Vanvitelli” and Centro Siciliano di Fisica Nucleare e Struttura della Materia! 🎉

Our paper,

“Radiobiology: A Geant4 Extended Example for voxel-based ion-beam transport and radiobiological endpoints”

has been published in Physica Medica.

Authors:
Alberto Sciuto, Giada Petringa, Davide Chiappara, Luciano Pandola, Alessandro Nivuori, Serena Fattori, Lorenzo Brighel, Fateme Farokhi, Lorenzo Manti and G A Pablo Cirrone

In this work, we present radiobiology, an official open-source Geant4 Extended Example designed to provide a lightweight and modular workflow for voxel-based ion-beam transport studies, where dosimetric quantities and radiobiological endpoints are obtained within a single simulation chain.

The application allows the simulation of therapeutic proton and light-ion beams interacting with a voxelized water phantom, configurable through simple macro commands. Within the same framework, users can score dose, track- and dose-averaged LET, and compute radiobiological quantities such as survival fraction and RBE, using look-up tables of linear–quadratic parameters and a Local Effect Model-based implementation.

The tool was validated against experimental benchmarks performed at INFN–LNS, including depth–dose curves measured with a Markus plane-parallel ionization chamber for 62 MeV protons and 62 MeV/u helium ions, LET-related trends derived from MicroPlus microdosimetric spectra, and RBE estimates compared with clonogenic survival data for MDA-MB-231 cells at mid-SOBP.

The results show good agreement between simulations and experimental measurements, confirming the reliability of the example for dose and LET-related studies and supporting its use as a practical bridge between macroscopic Monte Carlo transport and radiobiological endpoint evaluation.

This work represents an important step toward more reproducible and accessible radiobiological modelling in Geant4, offering the community a transparent and extensible tool for studies in particle therapy and ion-beam radiobiology.

You can read the full article here 👇
👉 https://authors.elsevier.com/a/1nP5j3%7EimgfoMm

A big thank you to all co-authors and collaborators who contributed to this work! 🙌

🔔 New Publication Alert!We are pleased to share a new publication from the Medical and Laser Physics Group of LNS–INFN, ...
07/07/2026

🔔 New Publication Alert!

We are pleased to share a new publication from the Medical and Laser Physics Group of LNS–INFN, in collaboration with Università di Catania, ENEA Frascati, INFN Roma Tor Vergata, Università di Roma Tor Vergata, Università di Milano-Bicocca, Fondazione Bruno Kessler, INFN Sezione di Catania and CSFNSM! 🎉

Our paper,

“Time of Flight diagnostic in laser-driven ion acceleration for ICF studies”

has been published in Il Nuovo Cimento C.

Authors:
Nicolò Macaluso, M. Alonzo, M. Cipriani, F. Consoli, E. Domenicone, B. Grau, S. Mirabella, M. Nocente, Giada Petringa, A. Picciotto, A. M. Raso, A. Scandurra, C. Verona and G A Pablo Cirrone

In this work, we present a concise overview of the use of Time-of-Flight detectors as online diagnostic tools in laser-driven ion acceleration experiments, with particular relevance for Inertial Confinement Fusion studies.

The study focuses on the real-time characterization of laser-accelerated proton and ion beams, including the reconstruction of energy spectra, cut-off energies, fluence and angular distributions. Semiconductor-based ToF detectors, such as diamond and silicon carbide devices, are highlighted as robust and reliable diagnostics, particularly suited for harsh laser–plasma environments characterized by intense particle fluxes and strong electromagnetic pulses.

Representative results from an experimental campaign carried out at the Prague Asterix Laser System within the INFN FUSION Project are discussed. The measurements demonstrate the capability of ToF diagnostics to provide shot-by-shot information on proton emission, supporting both the optimization of laser–matter interaction conditions and the investigation of the spatial structure of the accelerating fields.

This work confirms the key role of online diagnostics in high-intensity laser experiments and shows how Time-of-Flight measurements can effectively complement other ion detection techniques in the development of laser-driven sources for fusion-oriented and applied research.

You can read the full article here 👇
👉 https://doi.org/10.1393/ncc/i2026-26101-9

A big thank you to all co-authors and collaborators who contributed to this work! 🙌

🔔 New Publication Alert!We are pleased to share a new publication from the Medical and Laser Physics Group of LNS–INFN, ...
19/06/2026

🔔 New Publication Alert!

We are pleased to share a new publication from the Medical and Laser Physics Group of LNS–INFN, in collaboration with Université de Bordeaux, CNRS–LP2I, and VINATOM! 🎉

Our paper,
“Benchmarking pH-dependent chemical kinetics in the Geant4-DNA mesoscopic framework: A step towards mechanistic FLASH studies”,
has been published in Radiation Physics and Chemistry.

Authors:
Serena Fattori, Hoang Ngoc Tran, Le Tuan Anh, Fateme Farokhi, Adrien Paillet, G A Pablo Cirrone, Sebastien Incerti

In this work, we present the systematic validation of a new pH-dependent chemical solver implemented within the Geant4-DNA “UHDR” application, based on a mesoscopic Reaction–Diffusion Master Equation approach.

The study investigates the role of the local pH environment in water radiolysis, a key factor in determining the yields, equilibria, and time evolution of reactive oxygen species involved in radiation-induced biological damage. The implementation was benchmarked against reference experimental data and Monte Carlo simulations, including radiolytic yields for 300 MeV protons and the long-term disproportionation kinetics of the hydroperoxyl/superoxide radical system produced by 1 MeV electrons.

The results show good agreement within the pH 2.0–9.0 range, covering physiological and pathological conditions, including the acidic tumor microenvironment. This work represents an important step toward more realistic mechanistic studies of the FLASH effect, providing a robust computational tool to explore radical-chemistry hypotheses in ultra-high dose-rate radiobiology.

You can read the full article here 👇
👉 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radphyschem.2026.114038

A big thank you to all co-authors and collaborators who contributed to this work! 🙌

New Publication Alert! 🥳 We are pleased to announce our latest paper, “Electrical and electromagnetic characterization o...
16/06/2026

New Publication Alert!

🥳 We are pleased to announce our latest paper, “Electrical and electromagnetic characterization of a plasma discharge capillary source,” now published in Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion:

S. Arjmand et al., Plasma Phys. control. Fusion, 68, 065027, (2026).
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1088/1361-6587/ae7639

🔬 The paper reports the electrical and electromagnetic characterisation of a solid-state driven capillary plasma source developed at INFN-LNS for plasma based accelerators applications within I-LUCE radiation production facility. The I-LUCE facility is funded by three Italian projects under the PNRR (Piano Nazionale di Ripresa e Resilienza of the Italian Ministry of Research): ANTHEM (AdvaNced Technology for Human centEred Medicine) – project no. PNC0000003; EUAPS – project no. IR00000030, funded by EU-NextGenerationEU; and SAMOTHRACE (Sicilian Micro and Nano Technology Research and Innovation Center). In addition, this work has been carried out within the framework of the EUROfusion Enabling Research Project: CfP-FSD-AWP26-ENR-01 ``Conceptual design for a European High Power Laser Fusion Research Facility" (HiPER+RF), funded by the European Union through the Euratom Research and Training Programme (Grant Agreement No. 101052200 — EUROfusion). Finally, the author gratefully acknowledges COST Action CA21128 ``PROBONO” for its financial support of various research activities and exchanges that indirectly contributed to enabling this work.

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