High-sensitivity and spatial resolution benchtop cone beam XFCT imaging system with pixelated photon counting detectors using enhanced multipixel events correction method.

Objective. High atomic number element nanoparticles have shown potential in tumor diagnosis and therapy. X-ray fluorescence computed tomography (XFCT) technology enables quantitative imaging of high atomic number elements by specifically detecting characteristic x-ray signals. The potential for further biomedical applications of XFCT depends on balancing sensitivity, spatial resolution, and imaging speed in existing XFCT imaging systems. Approach. In this study, we utilized a high-energy resolution pixelated photon-counting detector for XFCT imaging. We tackled degradation caused by multi-pixel events in the photon-counting detector through energy and interaction position corrections. Sensitivity and spatial resolution imaging experiments were conducted using PMMA phantoms to validate the effectiveness of the multi-pixel events correction algorithm. Main results. After correction, the system's sensitivity and spatial resolution have both improved. Furthermore, XFCT/CBCT dual-modality imaging of gadolinium nanoparticles within mice subcutaneous tumor was successfully achieved. Significance. These results demonstrate the preclinical research application potential of the XFCT/CBCT dual-modality imaging system in high atomic number nanoparticle-based tumor diagnosis and therapy.
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