The DRAGO gamma camera

Journal Article · Thu Apr 15 00:00:00 EDT 2010 · Review of Scientific Instruments

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/1.3378686· OSTI ID:22053982

Fiorini, C; Gola, A; Peloso, R; Longoni, A ^[1]; Lechner, P; Soltau, H ^[2]; Strueder, L ^[3]; Ottobrini, L; Martelli, C; Lui, R ^[4]; Madaschi, L ^[5]; Belloli, S ^[6]

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1. Dipartimento di Elettronica e Informazione, Politecnico di Milano, Milano 20133, Italy and INFN, Sezione di Milano, Milano 20133 (Italy)
2. PNSensor GmbH and PNDetector GmbH, D-80803 Munich (Germany)
3. Max Planck Institut Halbleiterlabor, D-81739 Munich (Germany)
4. Department of Biomedical Sciences and Technologies, University of Milan, Milano 20133, Italy and Centre of Molecular and Cellular Imaging-IMAGO, Milano (Italy)
5. Department of Medicine, Surgery, and Dentistry, University of Milan, Milano 20142 (Italy)
6. IBFM-CNR, Istituto Scientifico Ospedale San Raffale, Milano 20132 (Italy)

In this work, we present the results of the experimental characterization of the DRAGO (DRift detector Array-based Gamma camera for Oncology), a detection system developed for high-spatial resolution gamma-ray imaging. This camera is based on a monolithic array of 77 silicon drift detectors (SDDs), with a total active area of 6.7 cm{sup 2}, coupled to a single 5-mm-thick CsI(Tl) scintillator crystal. The use of an array of SDDs provides a high quantum efficiency for the detection of the scintillation light together with a very low electronics noise. A very compact detection module based on the use of integrated readout circuits was developed. The performances achieved in gamma-ray imaging using this camera are reported here. When imaging a 0.2 mm collimated {sup 57}Co source (122 keV) over different points of the active area, a spatial resolution ranging from 0.25 to 0.5 mm was measured. The depth-of-interaction capability of the detector, thanks to the use of a Maximum Likelihood reconstruction algorithm, was also investigated by imaging a collimated beam tilted to an angle of 45 deg. with respect to the scintillator surface. Finally, the imager was characterized with in vivo measurements on mice, in a real preclinical environment.

• OSTI ID: 22053982
• Journal Information: Review of Scientific Instruments, Vol. 81, Issue 4; Other Information: (c) 2010 American Institute of Physics; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0034-6748
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
62 RADIOLOGY AND NUCLEAR MEDICINE
ALGORITHMS
BEAMS
CESIUM IODIDES
COBALT 57
GAMMA CAMERAS
GAMMA DETECTION
IN VIVO
KEV RANGE
LI-DRIFTED SI DETECTORS
MAXIMUM-LIKELIHOOD FIT
MICE
QUANTUM EFFICIENCY
READOUT SYSTEMS
SCINTILLATIONS
SOLID SCINTILLATION DETECTORS
SPATIAL RESOLUTION
VISIBLE RADIATION