Facultat de Física (ECM and ICC), Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.
Int J Radiat Biol. 2012 Jan;88(1-2):66-70. doi: 10.3109/09553002.2011.598209. Epub 2011 Aug 24.
To outline the limitations of PENELOPE (acronym of PENetration and Energy LOss of Positrons and Electrons) as a track-structure code, and to comment on modifications that enable its fruitful use in certain microdosimetry and nanodosimetry applications.
Attention is paid to the way in which inelastic collisions of electrons are modelled and to the ensuing implications for microdosimetry analysis.
Inelastic mean free paths and collision stopping powers calculated with PENELOPE and two well-known optical-data models are compared. An ad hoc modification of PENELOPE is summarized where ionization and excitation of liquid water by electron impact is simulated using tables of realistic differential and total cross sections.
PENELOPE can be employed advantageously in some track-structure applications provided that the default model for inelastic interactions of electrons is replaced by suitable tables of differential and total cross sections.
概述 PENELoPE（正电子和电子的穿透和能量损失的缩写）作为轨迹结构代码的局限性，并对能够使其在某些微剂量学和纳米剂量学应用中得到有效使用的修改进行评论。
关注电子非弹性碰撞的建模方式以及对微剂量学分析的影响。
比较了 PENELoPE 和两个著名的光学数据模型计算的非弹性平均自由程和碰撞阻止本领。总结了 PENELoPE 的一个特别修改，其中通过使用真实微分和总截面表来模拟电子碰撞对液态水的电离和激发。
只要用合适的微分和总截面表替换电子非弹性相互作用的默认模型，PENELoPE 就可以在一些轨迹结构应用中得到有利的应用。
