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To improve the performance and efficiency of an X-ray source in ordinary X-ray digital radiation imaging system (OXDRIS), parallel-polycapillary optics, in which a divergent X-ray beam can be modulated into a quasi-parallel beam, is introduced in the OXDRIS. The properties of the X-ray beam including beam intensity and divergence are then studied in polycapillary-optics-coupled X-ray DR imaging system (POXDRIS). Furthermore, the characteristics of a digital radiation (DR) image including spatial resolution and contrast are discussed using the POXDRIS. The intensity of the X-ray beam has been increased thirtyfold compared to the OXDRIS without the parallel-polycapillary optics. Moreover, a quasi-parallel beam with a divergence of 2.2 mrad is obtained. The results of the preliminary numerical analysis show that the image contrast and anti-noise performance are enhanced. As the energy range and spatial resolution are influenced by the material used and principle of the polycapillary, the approach should be employed carefully.

In Micro-CT (Computed Tomography) system, a series of projection data of sample are collected by the detector as the precision stage rotates step by step. However, the accuracy of projection images is limited by rotation errors during the acquisition process. Therefore, evaluating the performance of precision rotary stage and developing corresponding compensation method are necessary in Micro-CT system. In this paper, a metered system is designed which is composed of four precision capacitive sensors, a precision machined steel cylinder and four flexible hinges. Based on the metered system, a method to calibrate and correct the errors when the precision stage turns is proposed. Firstly, the theoretical analysis is proposed and the imperfect situations are considered. And then, the method has been applied to correct experimental data taken from a microscope type of Micro-CT system. Successful results are shown through evaluating MTF (Modulation Transfer Function) of Micro-CT system. Lastly, a sample of tungsten wire is scanned and the reconstructed images are compared before and after using the calibrated method.

Dual-energy x-ray technique, which consists in combining two radiographs acquired at two kilovoltage, can improve the identity of the compositions of object over regular CT, or at least improve image contrast. Dual-energy equations can be easily written and solved for ideally monochromatic x-ray source and perfect detector, but become complex when considering polychromatic x-ray source, detector sensitivity, and system non–linearity. In this paper, a new dual-energy algorithm which employed the basis material decomposition method was investigated for improving material separation capability. Studies by using computer-simulated data were performed to validate and evaluate the algorithm. The preliminary results of the study show that, with the proposed algorithm, separated “material specific” images of dual-material object could be obtained. Also monochromatic image can be acquired at arbitrary desired energy which could enhance image contrast in comparison with conventional reconstructed image.

The effects of calibration phantoms on the correction results of the empirical artifacts correction method (ECCU) for the case of tube modulation were investigated. To improve the validity of the ECCU method, the effect of the geometry parameter of a typical single-material calibration phantom (water calibration phantom) on the ECCU algorithm was investigated. Dual-material calibration phantoms (such as water-bone calibration phantom), geometry arrangement, and the area-ratio of dual-material calibration phantoms were also studied. Preliminary results implied that, to assure the effectiveness of the ECCU algorithm, the polychromatic projections of calibration phantoms must cover the polychromatic projection data of the scanning object. However, the projection range of a water calibration phantom is limited by the scan field of view (SFOV), thus leading to methodological limitations. A dual-material phantom of a proper size and material can overcome the limitations of a single-material phantom and achieve good correction effects.