Investigation of high resolution compact gamma camera module based on a continuous scintillation crystal using a novel charge division readout method

Abstract: 

The objective of this study is to investigate a high performance and lower cost compact gamma camera module for a multi-head small animal SPECT system. A compact camera module was developed using a thin Lutetium Oxyorthosilicate (LSO) scintillation crystal slice coupled to a Hamamatsu H8500 position sensitive photomultiplier tube (PSPMT). A two-stage charge division readout board based on a novel subtractive resistive readout
with a truncated center-of-gravity (TCOG) positioning method was developed for the camera. The performance of the camera was evaluated using a flood ^99mTc source with a four-quadrant bar-mask phantom. The preliminary experimental results show that the image shrinkage problem associated with the conventional resistive readout can be effectively overcome by the novel subtractive resistive readout with an appropriate fraction subtraction factor. The response output area (ROA) of the camera shown in the flood image was improved up to 34%, and an intrinsic spatial resolution better than 2 mm of detector was achieved. In conclusion, the utilization of a continuous scintillation crystal and a flat-panel PSPMT equipped with a novel subtractive resistive readout is a feasible approach for developing a high performance and lower cost compact gamma camera.