PET IMAGING SYSTEM INCLUDING DETECTOR ELEMENTS OF DIFFERENT DESIGN AND PERFORMANCE

• US 20120267536A1
• Filed: 04/21/2011
• Published: 10/25/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 04/21/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toshiba Medical Systems Corporation (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Toshiba Medical Systems Corporation (Canon Inc.), Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: GAGNON, Daniel
• Granted Patent: US 9,322,929 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 250/363.03
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/037 Emission tomography
• CPC Class Codes: G01T 1/1644 using an array of optically separate scintillation elements permitting direct location of scintillations G01T1/1645 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01T 1/2018 Scintillation-photodiode combinations
• CPC Class Codes: G01T 1/2985 In depth localisation, e.g. using positron emitters; Tomographic imaging (longitudinal and transverse section imaging; apparatus for radiation diagnosis sequentially in different planes, steroscopic radiation diagnosis); using external radiation sources A61B6/02

Abstract

A positron emission tomography (PET) scanner, including a first detector portion arranged circumferentially around a patient pallet, the first detector portion having a predetermined axial extent and transaxially subtending less than 360 degrees with respect to a central axis of the scanner defined by the first detector portion, wherein the first detector portion includes a plurality of first detector elements; and a second detector portion arranged separately from and opposing the first detector section, the second detector portion including a plurality of second detector elements, the second detector elements being of a different type than the first detector elements, wherein each of the first detector elements includes photomultiplier tubes (PMTs); and each of the second detector elements includes photosensors of a different type from the PMTs of the first detector elements.

Claims

1. A positron emission tomography (PET) scanner, comprising:

a first detector portion arranged circumferentially around a patient pallet, the first detector portion having a predetermined axial extent and transaxially subtending less than 360 degrees with respect to a central axis of the scanner defined by the first detector portion, wherein the first detector portion includes a plurality of first detector elements; and

a second detector portion arranged separately from and opposing the first detector section, the second detector portion including a plurality of second detector elements, the second detector elements being of a different type than the first detector elements,

wherein each of the first detector elements includes photomultiplier tubes (PMTs); and

each of the second detector elements includes photosensors of a different type from the PMTs of the first detector elements.

2. The PET scanner of claim 1, wherein each of the first detector elements includes a scintillation crystal having a first thickness and a first pixel surface area.

3. The PET scanner of claim 2, wherein each of the second detector elements includes a scintillation crystal having a second thickness different from the first thickness.

4. The PET scanner of claim 2, wherein each of the second detector elements includes a scintillation crystal having a second pixel surface area different from the first pixel surface area.

5. The PET scanner of claim 1, wherein each of the second detector elements includes a solid state photosensor.

6. The PET scanner of claim 1, wherein each of the second detector elements includes a silicon photomultiplier (SiPM).

7. The PET scanner of claim 1, wherein each of the second detector elements includes an avalanche photodiode (APD).

8. A positron emission tomography (PET) scanner, comprising:

a first detector portion arranged circumferentially around a patient pallet, the first detector portion having a predetermined axial extent and transaxially subtending less than 360 degrees with respect to a central axis of the scanner defined by the first detector portion, wherein the first detector portion includes a plurality of first detector elements; and

a second detector portion arranged separately from and opposing the first detector section, the second detector portion including a plurality of second detector elements,

wherein the second detector portion is configured to having different imaging properties than the first detector portion.

9. The PET scanner of claim 8, wherein the second detector portion is configured to have at least one of a timing resolution, an energy resolution, and sensitivity different from that of the first detector portion.

10. A positron emission tomography (PET) scanner, comprising:

a first detector portion arranged circumferentially around a patient pallet, the first detector portion having a predetermined axial extent and transaxially subtending less than 360 degrees with respect to a central axis of the scanner defined by the first detector portion, wherein the first detector portion includes a plurality of first detector elements; and

a second detector portion arranged separately from and opposing the first detector section, the second detector portion including a plurality of second detector elements, the second detector elements being of a different type than the first detector elements,

wherein an event acceptance window for the first detector portion is different than an event acceptance window for the second detector portion.