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PHYC41010

Academic Year 2026/2027

Radiation Oncology Physics I (PHYC41010)

Subject:
Physics
College:
Science
School:
Physics
Level:
4 (Masters)
Credits:
5
Module Coordinator:
Dr Brendan McClean
Trimester:
Autumn
Mode of Delivery:
Blended
Internship Module:
No
How will I be graded?
Letter grades

Curricular information is subject to change.

The module is designed to provide the principles of radiotherapy using external sources of radiation. Linear accelerator design, theory and operation will be described in detail. The characterisation of beams, associated dosimetric quantities and beam calibration is also presented. The principles of the treatment planning process, including volume definition, dose prescription, dose modelling and external beam dose distributions will be specifically dealt with. The module will also introduce the principles of the quality assurance (QA) programmes and techniques required for the safe delivery of radiation therapy treatments. Principles and methods of calculated and measured dose verification are presented.

About this Module

Learning Outcomes:

On completion of this module, students should have gained a good understanding of the production of high energy photon and electron beams from a linear accelerator along with the resultant dose distributions in human tissue. Students should have also become familiar with the principles of treatment planning along with QA of radiation producing devices and treatment planning systems.

The United Nations identified seventeen Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as core to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and UCD contributes in general to SDG 4 Quality Education. Further SDGs explored within this module if relevant are listed below. A scale of 1 - 5 indicates the extent to which the SDG is covered.


 

Student Effort Hours:
Student Effort Type Hours
Lectures

36

Specified Learning Activities

48

Autonomous Student Learning

36

Total

120


Approaches to Teaching and Learning:
The module will combine lectures, group work and presentations. Students will be required to present the findings. The module will also be assessed with an end of term exam

AI Usage
Students may use generative AI tools for limited support in this module. Students may use AI for planning and researching their work, assisting with their presentations, refining the language of text they alone have authored or debugging their own code, but not to generate text, interpret results (including experimental data, simulations), solve assigned problems, generate presentations, formulate scientific conclusions or write the code required for computational assignments. Students remain fully responsible for the accuracy and reliability of their learning, and should be able to demonstrate their understanding of the work submitted during discussions with staff. Specifically, students are expected to be able to answer questions and explain and justify the theory, procedures, analysis and conclusions provided in their assignments and projects, as well as the structure and workings of any code used. For any assignment/presentation/project, students must include a statement that they had adhered to this AI usage statement, which is based on UCD guidelines, citing any AI tools used and (if requested) the prompts submitted.

Requirements, Exclusions and Recommendations

Not applicable to this module.


Module Requisites and Incompatibles
Not applicable to this module.
 

Assessment Strategy
Description Timing Component Scale Must Pass Component % of Final Grade Component repeat (in-module) Offered
Exam (In-person): End of trimester exam. In-person exam at the exam centre. End of trimester
Duration:
2 hr(s)
Standard conversion grade scale 40% No
60
No
Group Work Assignment: Individual hand-up and group presentation on linear accelerators (linacs) in radiotherapy. Week 5 Standard conversion grade scale 40% No
10
No
Group Work Assignment: Group assignment on treatment planning, including presentation. Week 11 Standard conversion grade scale 40% No
15
No
Individual Project: Individual calculations on patient dosimetry and QA. Week 8 Standard conversion grade scale 40% No
15
No

As part of UCD's student support, under the Additional Consideration policy, extensions may be available for the following assessments in the module: Assignment (including essay/poster), Portfolio, Reflective Assignment, Report(s), and Individual Project.


Carry forward of passed components
Yes
 

Resit In Terminal Exam
Spring Yes - 2 Hour
Please see Student Jargon Buster for more information about remediation types and timing. 

Feedback Strategy/Strategies

• Feedback individually to students, post-assessment
• Group/class feedback, post-assessment

How will my Feedback be Delivered?

Not yet recorded.

Name Role
Dr Sean Cournane Lecturer / Co-Lecturer
Assoc Professor Luis Leon Vintro Lecturer / Co-Lecturer

Timetabling information is displayed only for guidance purposes, relates to the current Academic Year only and is subject to change.
Autumn Lecture Offering 1 Week(s) - Autumn: All Weeks Tues 09:00 - 09:50
Autumn Lecture Offering 1 Week(s) - Autumn: All Weeks Tues 15:00 - 16:50