A time-based double-sided readout concept of 100 mm LYSO:Ce,Ca fibres for future axial TOF-PET

Abstract Background Positron emission tomography (PET) requires a high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) to improve image quality, with time-of-flight (TOF) being an effective way to boost the SNR. However, the scanner sensitivity and resolution must be maintained. The use of axially aligned 100-mm LYSO:Ce,Ca scintillation crystals with double-sided readout has the potential of ground-breaking TOF and sensitivity, while reducing parallax errors through depth-of-interaction (DOI) estimation, and also allowing a reduction in the number of readout channels required, resulting in cost benefits. Due to orientation, these fibres may also facilitate the integration of TOF-PET with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in hybrid imaging systems. The challenge of achieving a good spatial resolution with such long axial fibres is directly related to the achievable TOF resolution. In this study, the timing performance and DOI resolution of emerging high-performance materials were investigated to assess the merits of this approach in organ-dedicated or total-body/large-scale PET imaging systems. Methods LYSO:Ce,Ca scintillation fibres of 20 mm and 100 mm length were tested in various operating and readout configurations to determine the best achievable coincidence time resolution (CTR) and DOI resolution. The tests were performed using state-of-the-art high-frequency (HF) readout and commercially available silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs) from Broadcom Inc. Results For the 100-mm fibre, an average CTR performance of $$137 \pm 1$$ 137 ± 1 ps FWHM and an average depth-of-interaction resolution within the fibre of $$12.3 \pm 0.5$$ 12.3 ± 0.5 mm FWHM could be obtained. The 20-mm fibre showed a sub-100 ps CTR of $$98 \pm 1$$ 98 ± 1 ps FWHM and a fibre resolution of $$8.5 \pm 0.2$$ 8.5 ± 0.2 mm FWHM in the double-sided readout configuration. Conclusion With modern SiPMs and crystals, a double-sided readout of long fibres can achieve excellent timing resolution and field-advancing TOF resolution, outperforming commercial PET systems. With 100-mm fibres, an electronic channel reduction of about a factor 2.5 is inherent, with larger reduction factors conceivable, which can lead to lower production costs. The spatial resolution was shown to be limited in the axial direction with 12 mm, but is defined to 3 mm in all other directions. Recent SiPM and scintillator developments are expected to improve on the time and spatial resolution to be investigated in future prototypes.