SUMMARY

The promise of comprehensive, nanoscale, characterization of radiation track structure is a basic, physical level understanding of the relationship between the characteristics of a given radiation and the damage caused. The effectiveness of radiation in achieving biological endpoints is known to differ with linear energy transfer (LET) as well as particle type. This thesis examines this multi-dimensional relationship using track-structure analysis and document the differences in complexity of damage produced by each type of radiation at various lineal energies by using cluster analysis of certain energy depositions. An effort is also made to determine if the implementation of a basic chromatin fiber geometry offers many benefits over previously suggested methods for this type of work. The author presents, in the following chapters: motivations for the construction of this thesis; background for the adoption of track-structure analysis; methods for the production of results; the ultimate results of simulation and cluster analysis; conclusions of these results; and a brief summary of recent developments and suggestions for future work.