Comparative Assessment of Silver and Gold Nanoparticles for Dose Enhancement in Layered Skin Geometries: A Monte Carlo Sensitivity Study

Year 2026, Volume: 12 Issue: 1 , 30 - 44 , 30.03.2026

Dursun Eşitmez , Mustafa Çağlar , Gülfem Süsoy Doğan

https://doi.org/10.28979/jarnas.1862846

https://izlik.org/JA76HF78RT

Abstract

This study quantifies nanoparticle-mediated dose modification in an idealized layered skin geometry using Monte Carlo (MCNP 6.3) (skin surface, epidermis ≈100 μm, dermis ≈500 μm, underlying skin). Homogeneous silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) and gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) at 5–30 mg/g were embedded in a 1 × 1 × 1 cm³ target, and energy-deposition tallies were converted to absorbed dose and reported as dose-enhancement factors (DEFs) normalized to 0 mg/g. Electron beams (6–12 Mega Electron Volt (MeV)) produced a near-linear DEF–concentration trend in the target with modest superficial gains; in contrast, low-energy photons (50/100 Kilo Electron Volt (keV)) yielded substantially higher enhancement, with AgNPs at 50 keV reaching ~560%, while adjacent normal-tissue sampling regions (OAR1–OAR6) remained near unity with mild, orientation-dependent anisotropy. Skin-layer summaries confirmed surface-weighted increases at low energies and more uniform depth profiles at higher MeV. Statistical uncertainties were <0.05 (1σ). Assumptions included homogeneous nanoparticle uptake and monoenergetic sources; clinical beam spectra and radiobiological endpoints were not evaluated. This work presents energy-specific Monte Carlo sensitivity results to compare relative dose-enhancement trends of AgNP and AuNP in idealized layered skin geometries under controlled monoenergetic beam assumptions.

Keywords

Dose enhancement factor , silver nanoparticles , gold nanoparticles , monoenergetic beams , layered skin geometry

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