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Bonanno G, Zampieri L, Naletto G, Paoletti L, Romeo G, Bruno P, Grillo A, Occhipinti G, Timpanaro MC, Gargano C, Fiori M, Rodeghiero G, Pareschi G, Scuderi S, Tosti G. Electronics and Detectors for the Stellar Intensity Interferometer of the ASTRI Mini-Array Telescopes. Sensors (Basel) 2023; 23:9840. [PMID: 38139685 PMCID: PMC10747531 DOI: 10.3390/s23249840] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2023] [Revised: 12/08/2023] [Accepted: 12/11/2023] [Indexed: 12/24/2023]
Abstract
The ASTRI Mini-Array is an international collaboration led by the Italian National Institute for Astrophysics (INAF) that will operate nine telescopes to perform Cherenkov and optical stellar intensity interferometry (SII) observations. At the focal plane of these telescopes, we are planning to install a stellar intensity interferometry instrument. Here we present the selected design, based on Silicon Photomultiplier (SiPM) detectors matching the telescope point spread function together with dedicated front-end electronics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giovanni Bonanno
- INAF-Osservatorio Astrofisico di Catania, Via Santa Sofia, 78, 95123 Catania, Italy; (G.R.); (P.B.); (A.G.); (G.O.); (M.C.T.)
| | - Luca Zampieri
- INAF-Osservatorio Astronomico di Padova, Vicolo dell’Osservatorio, 5, 35122 Padova, Italy; (L.Z.); (G.N.); (L.P.); (M.F.)
| | - Giampiero Naletto
- INAF-Osservatorio Astronomico di Padova, Vicolo dell’Osservatorio, 5, 35122 Padova, Italy; (L.Z.); (G.N.); (L.P.); (M.F.)
- Department of Physics and Astronomy “Galileo Galilei”, University of Padova, Via F. Marzolo, 8, 35131 Padova, Italy
| | - Lorenzo Paoletti
- INAF-Osservatorio Astronomico di Padova, Vicolo dell’Osservatorio, 5, 35122 Padova, Italy; (L.Z.); (G.N.); (L.P.); (M.F.)
| | - Giuseppe Romeo
- INAF-Osservatorio Astrofisico di Catania, Via Santa Sofia, 78, 95123 Catania, Italy; (G.R.); (P.B.); (A.G.); (G.O.); (M.C.T.)
| | - Pietro Bruno
- INAF-Osservatorio Astrofisico di Catania, Via Santa Sofia, 78, 95123 Catania, Italy; (G.R.); (P.B.); (A.G.); (G.O.); (M.C.T.)
| | - Alessandro Grillo
- INAF-Osservatorio Astrofisico di Catania, Via Santa Sofia, 78, 95123 Catania, Italy; (G.R.); (P.B.); (A.G.); (G.O.); (M.C.T.)
| | - Gianfranco Occhipinti
- INAF-Osservatorio Astrofisico di Catania, Via Santa Sofia, 78, 95123 Catania, Italy; (G.R.); (P.B.); (A.G.); (G.O.); (M.C.T.)
| | - Maria Cristina Timpanaro
- INAF-Osservatorio Astrofisico di Catania, Via Santa Sofia, 78, 95123 Catania, Italy; (G.R.); (P.B.); (A.G.); (G.O.); (M.C.T.)
| | - Carmelo Gargano
- INAF-Istituto di Astrofisica Spaziale e Fisica Cosmica, Via Ugo La Malfa 153, 90146 Palermo, Italy;
| | - Michele Fiori
- INAF-Osservatorio Astronomico di Padova, Vicolo dell’Osservatorio, 5, 35122 Padova, Italy; (L.Z.); (G.N.); (L.P.); (M.F.)
| | - Gabriele Rodeghiero
- INAF-Osservatorio di Astrofisica e Scienza dello Spazio di Bologna, Via Gobetti 93/3, 40129 Bologna, Italy;
| | - Giovanni Pareschi
- INAF-Osservatorio Astronomico di Brera-Merate, Via Brera 28, 20121 Milano, Italy;
| | - Salvatore Scuderi
- INAF-Istituto di Astrofisica Spaziale e Fisica Cosmica, Via Alfonso Corti 12, 20133 Milano, Italy;
| | - Gino Tosti
- Dipartimento di Fisica e Geologia, Università di Perugia, Via Alessandro Pascoli, 06123 Perugia, Italy;
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Dixon NEJ, Monk SD, Graham J, Cheneler D. Compact Back-End Electronics with Temperature Compensation and Efficient Data Management for In Situ SiPM-Based Radiation Detection. Sensors (Basel) 2023; 23:4053. [PMID: 37112392 PMCID: PMC10141715 DOI: 10.3390/s23084053] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2023] [Revised: 04/08/2023] [Accepted: 04/11/2023] [Indexed: 06/19/2023]
Abstract
A compact back-end interface for silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs) implementing Zener diode-based temperature compensation has been developed for the remote detection of beta and gamma radiation. Remote detection is facilitated by the development of an efficient data management system utilising MySQL database storage for recording periodic spectra data for wireless access over a private Wi-Fi network. A trapezoidal peak shaping algorithm has been implemented on an FPGA for the continuous conversation of pulses from the SiPM, signifying the detection of a radiological particle, into spectra. This system has been designed to fit within a 46 mm cylindrical diameter for in situ characterization, and can be attached to one or more SiPMs used in conjunction with a range of scintillators. LED blink tests have been used to optimise the trapezoidal shaper coefficients to maximise the resolution of the recorded spectra. Experiments with an array of SiPMs integrated with a NaI(Tl) scintillator exposed to sealed sources of Co-60, Cs-137, Na-22 and Am-241 have shown that the detector achieves a peak efficiency of 27.09 ± 0.13% for a gamma peak at 59.54 keV produced by Am-241, and a minimum energy resolution (Delta E/E) of 4.27 ± 1.16% for the 1332.5 keV gamma peak from Co-60.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nile E. J. Dixon
- Engineering Department, Lancaster University, Lancaster LA1 4YW, UK; (N.E.J.D.); (S.D.M.)
| | - Stephen D. Monk
- Engineering Department, Lancaster University, Lancaster LA1 4YW, UK; (N.E.J.D.); (S.D.M.)
| | - James Graham
- Central Laboratory, National Nuclear Laboratory Ltd., Warrington WA3 6AE, UK;
| | - David Cheneler
- Engineering Department, Lancaster University, Lancaster LA1 4YW, UK; (N.E.J.D.); (S.D.M.)
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Ishii K, Hanaoka K, Watanabe S, Morimoto-Ishikawa D, Yamada T, Kaida H, Yamakawa Y, Minagawa S, Takenouchi S, Ohtani A, Mizuta T. High-Resolution Silicon Photomultiplier Time-of-Flight Dedicated Head PET System for Clinical Brain Studies. J Nucl Med 2023; 64:153-158. [PMID: 35798557 PMCID: PMC9841263 DOI: 10.2967/jnumed.122.264080] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2022] [Revised: 06/29/2022] [Accepted: 06/29/2022] [Indexed: 01/28/2023] Open
Abstract
We acquired brain 18F-FDG and 18F-flutemetamol PET images using a time-of-flight system dedicated to the head (dhPET) and a conventional whole-body PET/CT (wbPET) system and evaluated the clinical superiority of dhPET over wbPET. Methods: There were 18 subjects for the 18F-FDG PET study and 17 subjects for the 18F-flutemetamol PET study. 18F-FDG PET images were first obtained using wbPET, followed by dhPET. 18F-flutemetamol PET images were first obtained using wbPET, followed by dhPET. Images acquired using dhPET and wbPET were compared by visual inspection, voxelwise analysis, and SUV ratio (SUVR). Results: All 18F-FDG and 18F-flutemetamol images acquired using dhPET were judged as visually better than those acquired using wbPET. The voxelwise analysis demonstrated that accumulations in the cerebellum, in the lateral occipital cortices, and around the central sulcus area in dhPET 18F-FDG images were lower than those in wbPET 18F-FDG images, whereas accumulations around the ventricle systems were higher in dhPET 18F-FDG images than those in wbPET 18F-FDG images. Accumulations in the cerebellar dentate nucleus, in the midbrain, in the lateral occipital cortices, and around the central sulcus area in dhPET images were lower than those in wbPET images, whereas accumulations around the ventricle systems were higher in dhPET 18F-flutemetamol images than those in wbPET 18F-flutemetamol images. The mean cortical SUVRs of 18F-FDG and 18F-flutemetamol dhPET images were significantly higher than those of 18F-FDG and 18F-flutemetamol wbPET images, respectively. Conclusion: The dhPET images had better image quality by visual inspection and higher SUVRs than wbPET images. Although there were several regional accumulation differences between dhPET and wbPET images, understanding this phenomenon will enable full use of the features of this dhPET system in clinical practice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kazunari Ishii
- Department of Radiology, Kindai University Faculty of Medicine, Osakasayama, Japan; .,Division of Positron Emission Tomography, Institute of Advanced Clinical Medicine, Kindai University Hospital, Osakasayama, Japan; and
| | - Kohei Hanaoka
- Division of Positron Emission Tomography, Institute of Advanced Clinical Medicine, Kindai University Hospital, Osakasayama, Japan; and
| | - Shota Watanabe
- Division of Positron Emission Tomography, Institute of Advanced Clinical Medicine, Kindai University Hospital, Osakasayama, Japan; and
| | - Daisuke Morimoto-Ishikawa
- Division of Positron Emission Tomography, Institute of Advanced Clinical Medicine, Kindai University Hospital, Osakasayama, Japan; and
| | - Takahiro Yamada
- Division of Positron Emission Tomography, Institute of Advanced Clinical Medicine, Kindai University Hospital, Osakasayama, Japan; and
| | - Hayato Kaida
- Department of Radiology, Kindai University Faculty of Medicine, Osakasayama, Japan;,Division of Positron Emission Tomography, Institute of Advanced Clinical Medicine, Kindai University Hospital, Osakasayama, Japan; and
| | | | - Suzuka Minagawa
- Medical Systems Division, Shimadzu Corporation, Kyoto, Japan
| | | | - Atsushi Ohtani
- Medical Systems Division, Shimadzu Corporation, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Tetsuro Mizuta
- Medical Systems Division, Shimadzu Corporation, Kyoto, Japan
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Yan T, Wang X, Liu S, Fan D, Xu X, Zeng Q, Xie H, Yang X, Zhu S, Ma X, Yuan Z, Chen X. Confocal Laser Scanning Microscopy Based on a Silicon Photomultiplier for Multicolor In Vivo Imaging in Near-Infrared Regions I and II. Small Methods 2022; 6:e2201105. [PMID: 36351753 DOI: 10.1002/smtd.202201105] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2022] [Revised: 10/12/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) is expected to exhibit a better imaging performance in the second near-infrared (NIR-II) windows with weak tissue scattering and autofluorescence. However, the indium gallium arsenide (InGaAs) detectors currently used for imaging in the NIR-II region are prohibitively expensive, hampering its extensive biomedical applications. In this study, a novel NIR-II CLSM system is developed by using the inexpensive silicon photomultiplier (SiPM) that can perform the multicolor biological imaging in vivo. Using IR-780 iodide as the contrast agent, the NIR-II imaging capability of constructed CLSM is inspected, demonstrating a spatial resolution of 1.68 µm (close to the diffraction limit) and a fluorophore detection sensitivity as low as 100 nm. In particular, it is discovered that the multicolor imaging performance in both NIR-I and NIR-II windows is comparable to those from multialkali and InGaAs photomultiplier tubes. In addition, 3D NIR-II CLSM is also conducted for in vivo imaging of the vascular structure in mouse ear and subcutaneous tumors. To the best of authors' knowledge, this is the first time that a low-cost detector based on a SiPM has been used for microscopic imaging of trailing fluorescence signals in the NIR-II region of an NIR fluorescent probe.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tianyu Yan
- School of Life Science and Technology, Xidian University & Engineering Research Center of Molecular and Neuro Imaging, Ministry of Education, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710126, China
- Xi'an Key Laboratory of Intelligent Sensing and Regulation of trans-Scale Life Information & International Joint Research Center for Advanced Medical Imaging and Intelligent Diagnosis and Treatment, School of Life Science and Technology, Xidian University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710126, China
| | - Xinyu Wang
- School of Life Science and Technology, Xidian University & Engineering Research Center of Molecular and Neuro Imaging, Ministry of Education, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710126, China
- Xi'an Key Laboratory of Intelligent Sensing and Regulation of trans-Scale Life Information & International Joint Research Center for Advanced Medical Imaging and Intelligent Diagnosis and Treatment, School of Life Science and Technology, Xidian University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710126, China
| | - Siting Liu
- School of Life Science and Technology, Xidian University & Engineering Research Center of Molecular and Neuro Imaging, Ministry of Education, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710126, China
- Xi'an Key Laboratory of Intelligent Sensing and Regulation of trans-Scale Life Information & International Joint Research Center for Advanced Medical Imaging and Intelligent Diagnosis and Treatment, School of Life Science and Technology, Xidian University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710126, China
| | - Dawei Fan
- School of Life Science and Technology, Xidian University & Engineering Research Center of Molecular and Neuro Imaging, Ministry of Education, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710126, China
- Xi'an Key Laboratory of Intelligent Sensing and Regulation of trans-Scale Life Information & International Joint Research Center for Advanced Medical Imaging and Intelligent Diagnosis and Treatment, School of Life Science and Technology, Xidian University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710126, China
| | - Xinyi Xu
- School of Life Science and Technology, Xidian University & Engineering Research Center of Molecular and Neuro Imaging, Ministry of Education, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710126, China
- Xi'an Key Laboratory of Intelligent Sensing and Regulation of trans-Scale Life Information & International Joint Research Center for Advanced Medical Imaging and Intelligent Diagnosis and Treatment, School of Life Science and Technology, Xidian University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710126, China
| | - Qi Zeng
- School of Life Science and Technology, Xidian University & Engineering Research Center of Molecular and Neuro Imaging, Ministry of Education, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710126, China
- Xi'an Key Laboratory of Intelligent Sensing and Regulation of trans-Scale Life Information & International Joint Research Center for Advanced Medical Imaging and Intelligent Diagnosis and Treatment, School of Life Science and Technology, Xidian University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710126, China
| | - Hui Xie
- School of Life Science and Technology, Xidian University & Engineering Research Center of Molecular and Neuro Imaging, Ministry of Education, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710126, China
- Xi'an Key Laboratory of Intelligent Sensing and Regulation of trans-Scale Life Information & International Joint Research Center for Advanced Medical Imaging and Intelligent Diagnosis and Treatment, School of Life Science and Technology, Xidian University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710126, China
| | - Xiaoli Yang
- School of Control Science and Engineering, Shandong University, Jinan, Shandong, 250061, China
| | - Shouping Zhu
- School of Life Science and Technology, Xidian University & Engineering Research Center of Molecular and Neuro Imaging, Ministry of Education, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710126, China
- Xi'an Key Laboratory of Intelligent Sensing and Regulation of trans-Scale Life Information & International Joint Research Center for Advanced Medical Imaging and Intelligent Diagnosis and Treatment, School of Life Science and Technology, Xidian University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710126, China
- Innovation Center for Advanced Medical Imaging and Intelligent Medicine, Guangzhou Institute of Technology, Xidian University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, 51055, China
| | - Xiaopeng Ma
- School of Control Science and Engineering, Shandong University, Jinan, Shandong, 250061, China
| | - Zhen Yuan
- Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Macau, 999078, China
| | - Xueli Chen
- School of Life Science and Technology, Xidian University & Engineering Research Center of Molecular and Neuro Imaging, Ministry of Education, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710126, China
- Xi'an Key Laboratory of Intelligent Sensing and Regulation of trans-Scale Life Information & International Joint Research Center for Advanced Medical Imaging and Intelligent Diagnosis and Treatment, School of Life Science and Technology, Xidian University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710126, China
- Innovation Center for Advanced Medical Imaging and Intelligent Medicine, Guangzhou Institute of Technology, Xidian University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, 51055, China
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Kolka Z, Barcik P, Biolkova V. Statistical Analysis of Silicon Photomultiplier Output Signals. Sensors (Basel) 2022; 22:9134. [PMID: 36501835 PMCID: PMC9737098 DOI: 10.3390/s22239134] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2022] [Revised: 11/18/2022] [Accepted: 11/22/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Silicon photomultipliers are relatively new devices designed as a matrix of single-photon avalanche detectors, which have become popular for their miniature dimensions and low operating voltage. Their superior sensitivity allows detecting low-photon-count optical pulses, e.g., in ranging and LIDAR applications. The output signal of the photomultiplier is a non-stationary stochastic process, from which a weak periodic pulse can be extracted by means of statistical processing. Using the double-exponential approximation of output avalanche pulses the paper presents a simple analytical solution to the mean and variance of the stochastic process. It is shown that even for an ideal square optical pulse the rising edge of the statistically detected signal is longer than the edge of individual avalanche pulses. The knowledge of the detected waveform can be used to design an optimum laser pulse waveform or algorithms for estimating the time of arrival. The experimental section demonstrates the proposed procedure.
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Ko K, Choi H, Yi Y, Kim W, Kim J, Hwang J, Ko E, Cho G. Discrete Convolution-Based Energy Spectrum Configuring Method for the Analysis of the Intrinsic Radiation of 176Lu. Sensors (Basel) 2021; 21:s21217040. [PMID: 34770347 PMCID: PMC8587293 DOI: 10.3390/s21217040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2021] [Revised: 10/15/2021] [Accepted: 10/21/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
There has been considerable interest in inorganic scintillators based on lutetium due to their favorable physical properties. Despite their advantages, lutetium-based scintillators could face issues because of the natural occurring radioisotope of 176Lu that is contained in natural lutetium. In order to mitigate its potential shortcomings, previous works have studied to understand the energy spectrum of the intrinsic radiation of 176Lu (IRL). However, few studies have focused on the various principal types of photon interactions with matter; in other words, only the full-energy peak according to the photoelectric effect or internal conversion have been considered for understanding the energy spectrum of IRL. Thus, the approach we have used in this study considers other principal types of photon interactions by convoluting each energy spectrum with combinations for generating the spectrum of the intrinsic radiation of 176Lu. From the results, we confirm that the method provides good agreement with the experiment. A significant contribution of this study is the provision of a new approach to process energy spectra induced by mutually independent radiation interactions as a single spectrum.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kilyoung Ko
- Department of Nuclear and Quantum Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon 34141, Korea; (K.K.); (H.C.); (W.K.); (J.K.); (J.H.); (E.K.)
| | - Hyunwoong Choi
- Department of Nuclear and Quantum Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon 34141, Korea; (K.K.); (H.C.); (W.K.); (J.K.); (J.H.); (E.K.)
| | - Yongsun Yi
- Department of Nuclear Engineering, Khalifa University of Science Technology and Research, Abu Dhabi P.O. Box 127788, United Arab Emirates;
| | - Wonku Kim
- Department of Nuclear and Quantum Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon 34141, Korea; (K.K.); (H.C.); (W.K.); (J.K.); (J.H.); (E.K.)
| | - Junhyeok Kim
- Department of Nuclear and Quantum Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon 34141, Korea; (K.K.); (H.C.); (W.K.); (J.K.); (J.H.); (E.K.)
| | - Jisung Hwang
- Department of Nuclear and Quantum Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon 34141, Korea; (K.K.); (H.C.); (W.K.); (J.K.); (J.H.); (E.K.)
| | - Eunbie Ko
- Department of Nuclear and Quantum Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon 34141, Korea; (K.K.); (H.C.); (W.K.); (J.K.); (J.H.); (E.K.)
| | - Gyuseong Cho
- Department of Nuclear and Quantum Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon 34141, Korea; (K.K.); (H.C.); (W.K.); (J.K.); (J.H.); (E.K.)
- Correspondence:
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Abstract
Time of flight positron emission tomography can strongly benefit from a very accurate time estimator given by Cherenkov radiation, which is produced upon a 511 keV positron-electron annihilation gamma interaction in heavy inorganic scintillators. While time resolution in the order of 30 ps full width at half maximum (FWHM) has been reported using MCP-PMTs and black painted Cherenkov radiators, such solutions have several disadvantages, like high cost and low detection efficiency of nowadays available MCP-PMTs. On the other hand, silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs) are not limited by those obstacles and provide high photon detection efficiency with a decent time response. Timing performance of PbF2crystals of various lengths and surface conditions coupled to SiPMs was evaluated against a reference detector with an optimized test setup using high-frequency readout and novel time walk correction, with special attention on the intrinsic limits for one detected Cherenkov photon only. The average number of detected Cherenkov photons largely depends on the crystal surface state, resulting in a tradeoff between low photon time spread, thus good timing performance, and sensitivity. An intrinsic Cherenkov photon yield of 16.5 ± 3.3 was calculated for 2 × 2 × 3 mm3sized PbF2crystals upon 511 keVγ-deposition. After time walk correction based on the slew rate of the signal, assuming two identical detector arms in coincidence, and using all events, a time resolution of 215 ps FWHM (142 ps FWHM) was obtained for 2 × 2 × 20 mm3(2 × 2 × 3 mm3) sized PbF2crystals, compared to 261 ps (190 ps) without correction. Selecting on one detected photon only, a single photon coincidence time resolution of 113 ps FWHM for black painted and 166 ps for Teflon wrapped crystals was measured for 3 mm length, compared to 145 ps (black) and 263 ps (Teflon) for 20 mm length.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicolaus Kratochwil
- CERN, Esplanade des Particules 1, 1211 Meyrin, Switzerland.,University of Vienna, Universitaetsring 1, A-1010 Vienna, Austria
| | - Stefan Gundacker
- CERN, Esplanade des Particules 1, 1211 Meyrin, Switzerland.,Department of Physics of Molecular Imaging Systems, Institute for Experimental Molecular Imaging, RWTH Aachen University, Forckenbeckstrasse 55, D-52074 Aachen, Germany
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van der Sar SJ, Brunner SE, Schaart DR. Silicon photomultiplier-based scintillation detectors for photon-counting CT: A feasibility study. Med Phys 2021; 48:6324-6338. [PMID: 34169535 PMCID: PMC8596580 DOI: 10.1002/mp.14886] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2020] [Revised: 02/07/2021] [Accepted: 03/29/2021] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
PURPOSE The implementation of photon-counting detectors is widely expected to be the next breakthrough in X-ray computed tomography (CT) instrumentation. A small number of prototype scanners equipped with direct-conversion detectors based on room-temperature semiconductors, such as CdTe and CdZnTe (CZT), are currently installed at medical centers. Here, we investigate the feasibility of using silicon photomultiplier (SiPM)-based scintillation detectors in photon-counting computed tomography (PCCT) scanners, as a potential alternative to CdTe and CZT detectors. METHODS We introduce a model that allows us to compute the expected energy resolution as well as the expected pulse shape and associated rate capability of SiPM-based PCCT detectors. The model takes into account SiPM saturation and optical crosstalk, because these phenomena may substantially affect the performance of SiPM-based PCCT detectors with sub-mm pixels. We present model validation experiments using a single-pixel detector consisting of a 0.9 × 0.9 × 1.0 mm3 LuAP:Ce scintillation crystal coupled to a 1 × 1 mm2 SiPM. We subsequently use the validated model to compute the expected performance of the fast scintillators LYSO:Ce, LuAP:Ce, and LaBr3 :Ce, coupled to currently available SiPMs, as well as to a more advanced SiPM prototype with improved dynamic range, for sub-mm pixel sizes. RESULTS The model was found to be in good agreement with the validation experiments, both with respect to energy resolution and pulse shape. It shows how saturation progressively degrades the energy resolution of detectors equipped with currently available SiPMs as the pixel size decreases. Moreover, the expected pulse duration is relatively long (~200 ns) with these SiPMs. However, when LuAP:Ce and LaBr3 :Ce are coupled to the more advanced SiPM prototype, the pulse duration improves to less than 60 ns, which is in the same order of magnitude as pulses from CdTe and CZT detectors. It follows that sufficient rate capability can be achieved with pixel sizes of 400 μm or smaller. Moreover, LaBr3 :Ce detectors can provide an energy resolution of 11.5%-13.5% at 60 keV, comparable to CdTe and CZT detectors. CONCLUSIONS This work provides first evidence that it may be feasible to develop SiPM-based scintillation detectors for PCCT that can compete with CdTe and CZT detectors in terms of energy resolution and rate capability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefan J van der Sar
- Department of Radiation Science and Technology, Delft University of Technology, Delft, The Netherlands
| | | | - Dennis R Schaart
- Department of Radiation Science and Technology, Delft University of Technology, Delft, The Netherlands.,Holland Proton Therapy Center, Delft, The Netherlands
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Lee MS, Cates JW, Gonzalez-Montoro A, Levin CS. High-resolution time-of-flight PET detector with 100 ps coincidence time resolution using a side-coupled phoswich configuration. Phys Med Biol 2021; 66. [PMID: 34106089 DOI: 10.1088/1361-6560/ac01b5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2020] [Accepted: 05/14/2021] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Photon time-of-flight (TOF) capability in positron emission tomography (PET) enables reconstructed image signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) improvement. With the coincidence time resolution (CTR) of 100 picosecond (ps), a five-fold SNR improvement can be achieved with a 40 cm diameter imaging subject, relative to a system without TOF capability. This 100 ps CTR can be achieved for aclinically relevantdetector design (crystal element length ≥20 mm with reasonably high crystal packing fraction) using a side-readout PET detector configuration that enables 511 keV photon interaction depth-independent light collection efficiency and lower variance in scintillation photon transit time to the silicon photomultiplier (SiPM). In this study, we propose a new concept of TOF-PET detector to achieve high (<2 mm) resolution, using a 'side-coupled phoswich' configuration, where two crystals with different decay times (τd) are coupled in a side-readout configuration to a common row of photosensors. The proposed design was validated and optimized with GATE Monte Carlo simulation studies to determine an efficient detector design. Based on the simulation results, a proof-of-concept side-coupled phoswich detector design was developed comprising two LSO crystals with the size of 1.9 × 1.9 × 10 mm3with decay times of 34.39 and 43.07 ns, respectively. The phoswich crystals were side-coupled to the same three 4 × 4 mm2SiPMs and detector performances were evaluated. As a result of the experimental evaluation, the side-coupled phoswich configuration achieved CTR of 107 ± 3 ps, energy resolution of 10.5% ± 1.21% at 511 keV and >95% accuracy in identifying interactions in the two adjacent 1.9 × 1.9 × 10 mm3crystal elements using the time-over-threshold technique. Based on our results, we can achieve excellent spatial and energy resolution in addition to ∼100 ps CTR with this novel detector design.
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Affiliation(s)
- Min Sun Lee
- Department of Radiology, Molecular Imaging Program at Stanford, School of Medicine, Stanford University, CA, United States of America.,Nuclear Emergency & Environmental Protection Division, Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daejeon, Republic of Korea
| | - Joshua W Cates
- Applied Nuclear Physics Program, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, CA, United States of America
| | - Andrea Gonzalez-Montoro
- Department of Radiology, Molecular Imaging Program at Stanford, School of Medicine, Stanford University, CA, United States of America
| | - Craig S Levin
- Department of Radiology, Molecular Imaging Program at Stanford, School of Medicine, Stanford University, CA, United States of America.,Department of Physics, Stanford University, CA, United States of America.,Department of Electrical Engineering, Stanford University, CA, United States of America.,Department of Bioengineering, Stanford University, CA, United States of America
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10
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Baratto L, Toriihara A, Hatami N, Aparici CM, Davidzon G, Levin CS, Iagaru A. Results of a Prospective Trial to Compare 68Ga-DOTA-TATE with SiPM-Based PET/CT vs. Conventional PET/CT in Patients with Neuroendocrine Tumors. Diagnostics (Basel) 2021; 11:diagnostics11060992. [PMID: 34070751 PMCID: PMC8228776 DOI: 10.3390/diagnostics11060992] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2021] [Revised: 05/18/2021] [Accepted: 05/25/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
We prospectively enrolled patients with neuroendocrine tumors (NETs). They underwent a single 68Ga-DOTA-TATE injection followed by dual imaging and were randomly scanned using first either the conventional or the silicon photomultiplier (SiPM) positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT), followed by imaging using the other system. A total of 94 patients, 44 men and 50 women, between 35 and 91 years old (mean ± SD: 63 ± 11.2), were enrolled. Fifty-two out of ninety-four participants underwent SiPM PET/CT first and a total of 162 lesions were detected using both scanners. Forty-two out of ninety-four participants underwent conventional PET/CT first and a total of 108 lesions were detected using both scanners. Regardless of whether SiPM-based PET/CT was used first or second, maximum standardized uptake value (SUVmax) of lesions measured on SiPM was on average 20% higher when comparing two scanners with all enrolled patients, and the difference was statistically significant. SiPM-based PET/CT detected 19 more lesions in 13 patients compared with conventional PET/CT. No lesions were only identified by conventional PET/CT. In conclusion, we observed higher SUVmax for lesions measured from SiPM PET/CT compared with conventional PET/CT regardless of the order of the scans. SiPM PET/CT allowed for identification of more lesions than conventional PET/CT. While delayed imaging can lead to higher SUVmax in cancer lesions, in the series of lesions identified when SiPM PET/CT was used first, this was not the case; therefore, the data suggest superior performance of the SiPM PET/CT scanner in visualizing and quantifying lesions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lucia Baratto
- Division of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, Department of Radiology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94035, USA; (N.H.); (C.M.A.); (G.D.); (A.I.)
- Correspondence: (L.B.); (A.T.)
| | - Akira Toriihara
- PET Imaging Center, Asahi General Hospital, Asahi 289-1101, Japan
- Correspondence: (L.B.); (A.T.)
| | - Negin Hatami
- Division of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, Department of Radiology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94035, USA; (N.H.); (C.M.A.); (G.D.); (A.I.)
| | - Carina M. Aparici
- Division of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, Department of Radiology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94035, USA; (N.H.); (C.M.A.); (G.D.); (A.I.)
| | - Guido Davidzon
- Division of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, Department of Radiology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94035, USA; (N.H.); (C.M.A.); (G.D.); (A.I.)
| | - Craig S. Levin
- Molecular Imaging Program, Department of Radiology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA;
| | - Andrei Iagaru
- Division of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, Department of Radiology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94035, USA; (N.H.); (C.M.A.); (G.D.); (A.I.)
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11
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Pratte JF, Nolet F, Parent S, Vachon F, Roy N, Rossignol T, Deslandes K, Dautet H, Fontaine R, Charlebois SA. 3D Photon-to-Digital Converter for Radiation Instrumentation: Motivation and Future Works. Sensors (Basel) 2021; 21:E598. [PMID: 33467016 DOI: 10.3390/s21020598] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2020] [Revised: 01/11/2021] [Accepted: 01/12/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Analog and digital SiPMs have revolutionized the field of radiation instrumentation by replacing both avalanche photodiodes and photomultiplier tubes in many applications. However, multiple applications require greater performance than the current SiPMs are capable of, for example timing resolution for time-of-flight positron emission tomography and time-of-flight computed tomography, and mitigation of the large output capacitance of SiPM array for large-scale time projection chambers for liquid argon and liquid xenon experiments. In this contribution, the case will be made that 3D photon-to-digital converters, also known as 3D digital SiPMs, have a potentially superior performance over analog and 2D digital SiPMs. A review of 3D photon-to-digital converters is presented along with various applications where they can make a difference, such as time-of-flight medical imaging systems and low-background experiments in noble liquids. Finally, a review of the key design choices that must be made to obtain an optimized 3D photon-to-digital converter for radiation instrumentation, more specifically the single-photon avalanche diode array, the CMOS technology, the quenching circuit, the time-to-digital converter, the digital signal processing and the system level integration, are discussed in detail.
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12
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Deng Z, Deng Y, Chen G. Design and Evaluation of LYSO/SiPM LIGHTENING PET Detector with DTI Sampling Method. Sensors (Basel) 2020; 20:E5820. [PMID: 33076244 PMCID: PMC7650676 DOI: 10.3390/s20205820] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2020] [Revised: 10/03/2020] [Accepted: 10/12/2020] [Indexed: 05/08/2023]
Abstract
Positron emission tomography (PET) has a wide range of applications in the treatment and prevention of major diseases owing to its high sensitivity and excellent resolution. However, there is still much room for optimization in the readout circuit and fast pulse sampling to further improve the performance of the PET scanner. In this work, a LIGHTENING® PET detector using a 13 × 13 lutetium-yttrium oxyorthosilicate (LYSO) crystal array read out by a 6 × 6 silicon photomultiplier (SiPM) array was developed. A novel sampling method, referred to as the dual time interval (DTI) method, is therefore proposed to realize digital acquisition of fast scintillation pulse. A semi-cut light guide was designed, which greatly improves the resolution of the edge region of the crystal array. The obtained flood histogram shown that all the 13 × 13 crystal pixels can be clearly discriminated. The optimum operating conditions for the detector were obtained by comparing the flood histogram quality under different experimental conditions. An average energy resolution (FWHM) of 14.3% and coincidence timing resolution (FWHM) of 972 ps were measured. The experimental results demonstrated that the LIGHTENING® PET detector achieves extremely high resolution which is suitable for the development of a high performance time-of-flight PET scanner.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhenzhou Deng
- School of Information Engineering, Nanchang University, Nanchang 330031, China; (Y.D.); (G.C.)
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13
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Calò PAP, Petrignani S, Di Gioia M, Marzocca C. Analytical Study of Front-End Circuits Coupled to Silicon Photomultipliers for Timing Performance Estimation under the Influence of Parasitic Components. Sensors (Basel) 2020; 20:s20164428. [PMID: 32784392 PMCID: PMC7472482 DOI: 10.3390/s20164428] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2020] [Revised: 08/05/2020] [Accepted: 08/05/2020] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
Full exploitation of the intrinsic fast timing capabilities of analog silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs) requires suitable front-end electronics. Even a parasitic inductance of a few nH, associated to the interconnections between the SiPM and the preamplifier, can significantly degrade the steepness of the detector response, thus compromising the timing accuracy. In this work, we propose a simple analytic expression for the single-photon response of a SiPM coupled to the front-end electronics, as a function of the main parameters of the detector and the preamplifier, taking into account the parasitic inductance. The model is useful to evaluate the influence of each parameter of the system on the slope of its response and to guide the designer in the definition of the architecture and the specifications for the front-end electronics. The results provided by the model have been successfully compared with experimental measurements from a front-end circuit with variable configuration based on a bipolar junction transistor (BJT), coupled to a 3 × 3 mm2 SiPM stimulated by a fast-pulsed laser source.
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14
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Stornelli V, Pantoli L, Barile G, Leoni A, D'Amico E. Silicon Photomultiplier Sensor Interface Based on a Discrete Second Generation Voltage Conveyor. Sensors (Basel) 2020; 20:E2042. [PMID: 32260552 DOI: 10.3390/s20072042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/05/2020] [Revised: 03/31/2020] [Accepted: 04/02/2020] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
This work presents the design of a discrete second-generation voltage conveyor (VCII) and its capability to be used as electronic interface for silicon photomultipliers. The design addressed here exploits directly at the transistor level, with commercial components, the proposed interface; the obtained performance is valuable considering both the discrete elements and the application. The architecture adopted here realizes a transimpedance amplifier that is also able to drive very high input impedance, as usually requested by photons detection. Schematic and circuital design of the discrete second-generation voltage conveyor is presented and discussed. The complete circuit interface requires a bias current of 20 mA with a dual 5V supply voltage; it has a useful bandwidth of about 106 MHz, and considering also the reduced dimensions, it is a good candidate to be used in portable applications without the need of high-cost dedicated integrated circuits.
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15
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Abstract
The silicon photomultiplier (SIPM) is an emerging detector technology that enables both high sensitivity and high dynamic range detection of visible and near-infrared light at a fraction of the cost of conventional vacuum tube photomultiplier tubes (PMTs). A low-cost detection circuit is presented and the performance of a commercial SIPM is evaluated for high-speed laser scanning microscopy applications. For moderate-to-high-speed fluorescent imaging applications, the measurements and imaging results indicate that the SIPM exceeds the sensitivity of GaAsP PMTs, while providing higher dynamic range and better saturation behavior. For low speed or applications requiring large detector areas, the GaAsP PMT retains a sensitivity advantage due to large area and lower dark counts. The calculations presented show that, above a critical detection bandwidth, the SIPM sensitivity exceeds that of a GaAsP PMT.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael G. Giacomelli
- University of Rochester, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Rochester, New York, United States
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16
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Petralia S, Sciuto EL, Santangelo MF, Libertino S, Messina MA, Conoci S. Sulfide Species Optical Monitoring by a Miniaturized Silicon Photomultiplier. Sensors (Basel) 2018; 18:E727. [PMID: 29495639 PMCID: PMC5877286 DOI: 10.3390/s18030727] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/26/2018] [Revised: 02/15/2018] [Accepted: 02/22/2018] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
The monitoring of water-soluble pollutants is receiving a growing interest from the scientific community. In this context, sulfide anion species S2- and HS- are particularly relevant since they can cause acute and chronic toxicity including neurological effects and at high concentrations, even death. In this study, a new strategy for fast and sensitive optical detection of sulfide species in water samples is described. The method uses an integrated silicon photomultiplier (SiPM) device coupled with the appropriate analytical strategy applied in a plastic microchip with dried reagents on board. More specifically, all sulfide species (H₂S, HS- and S2-) in water samples are detected by the fluorescence signal emitted upon the reaction with N,N-dimethyl-phenylenediamine sulfate in the presence of Fe3+, leading to the formation of the fluorescent methylene blue (MB) species. It has been proven that the system herein proposed is able to measure sulfide concentration in a linear range from 0-10 mg L-1 with a sensitivity value of about 6.7 µA mg-1 L and a detection limit of 0.5 mg L-1. A comparison with conventional UV-Vis detection method has been also carried out. Data show a very good linear correlation (R² = 0.98093), proving the effectiveness of the method. Results pave the way toward the development of portable and low-cost device systems for water-soluble sulfide pollutants.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - Maria Anna Messina
- Azienda Policlinico Universitario, Via S. Sofia 78, 95100 Catania, Italy.
- Centro Speleologico Etneo, Via Valdisavoia 5, 95123 Catania, Italy.
| | - Sabrina Conoci
- STMicroelectronics, Stradale Primosole 50, 95121 Catania, Italy.
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17
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Ren M, Zhou J, Song B, Zhang C, Dong M, Albarracín R. Towards Optical Partial Discharge Detection with Micro Silicon Photomultipliers. Sensors (Basel) 2017; 17:E2595. [PMID: 29125544 DOI: 10.3390/s17112595] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2017] [Revised: 10/31/2017] [Accepted: 11/02/2017] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Optical detection is reliable in intrinsically characterizing partial discharges (PDs). Because of the great volume and high-level power supply of the optical devices that can satisfy the requirements in photosensitivity, optical PD detection can merely be used in laboratory studies. To promote the practical application of the optical approach in an actual power apparatus, a silicon photomultiplier (SiPM)-based PD sensor is introduced in this paper, and its basic properties, which include the sensitivity, pulse resolution, correlation with PD severity, and electromagnetic (EM) interference immunity, are experimentally evaluated. The stochastic phase-resolved PD pattern (PRPD) for three typical insulation defects are obtained by SiPM PD detector and are compared with those obtained using a high-frequency current transformer (HFCT) and a vacuum photomultiplier tube (PMT). Because of its good performances in the above aspects and its additional advantages, such as the small size, low power supply, and low cost, SiPM offers great potential in practical optical PD monitoring.
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18
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D'Ascenzo N, Zhang X, Xie Q. Application of CMOS Technology to Silicon Photomultiplier Sensors. Sensors (Basel) 2017; 17:s17102204. [PMID: 28946675 PMCID: PMC5677208 DOI: 10.3390/s17102204] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2017] [Revised: 09/20/2017] [Accepted: 09/21/2017] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
We use the 180 nm GLOBALFOUNDRIES (GF) BCDLite CMOS process for the production of a silicon photomultiplier prototype. We study the main characteristics of the developed sensor in comparison with commercial SiPMs obtained in custom technologies and other SiPMs developed with CMOS-compatible processes. We support our discussion with a transient modeling of the detection process of the silicon photomultiplier as well as with a series of static and dynamic experimental measurements in dark and illuminated environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicola D'Ascenzo
- School of life science and technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430073, China.
| | - Xi Zhang
- School of life science and technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430073, China.
| | - Qingguo Xie
- School of life science and technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430073, China.
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Deller TW, Khalighi MM, Jansen FP, Glover GH. PET Imaging Stability Measurements During Simultaneous Pulsing of Aggressive MR Sequences on the SIGNA PET/MR System. J Nucl Med 2017; 59:167-172. [PMID: 28747522 DOI: 10.2967/jnumed.117.194928] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2017] [Accepted: 07/05/2017] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
The recent introduction of simultaneous whole-body PET/MR scanners has enabled new research taking advantage of the complementary information obtainable with PET and MRI. One such application is kinetic modeling, which requires high levels of PET quantitative stability. To accomplish the required PET stability levels, the PET subsystem must be sufficiently isolated from the effects of MR activity. Performance measurements have previously been published, demonstrating sufficient PET stability in the presence of MR pulsing for typical clinical use; however, PET stability during radiofrequency (RF)-intensive and gradient-intensive sequences has not previously been evaluated for a clinical whole-body scanner. In this work, PET stability of the GE SIGNA PET/MR was examined during simultaneous scanning of aggressive MR pulse sequences. Methods: PET performance tests were acquired with MR idle and during simultaneous MR pulsing. Recent system improvements mitigating RF interference and gain variation were used. A fast recovery fast spin echo MR sequence was selected for high RF power, and an echo planar imaging sequence was selected for its high heat-inducing gradients. Measurements were performed to determine PET stability under varying MR conditions using the following metrics: sensitivity, scatter fraction, contrast recovery, uniformity, count rate performance, and image quantitation. A final PET quantitative stability assessment for simultaneous PET scanning during functional MRI studies was performed with a spiral in-and-out gradient echo sequence. Results: Quantitation stability of a 68Ge flood phantom was demonstrated within 0.34%. Normalized sensitivity was stable during simultaneous scanning within 0.3%. Scatter fraction measured with a 68Ge line source in the scatter phantom was stable within the range of 40.4%-40.6%. Contrast recovery and uniformity were comparable for PET images acquired simultaneously with multiple MR conditions. Peak noise equivalent count rate was 224 kcps at an effective activity concentration of 18.6 kBq/mL, and the count rate curves and scatter fraction curve were consistent for the alternating MR pulsing states. A final test demonstrated quantitative stability during a spiral functional MRI sequence. Conclusion: PET stability metrics demonstrated that PET quantitation was not affected during simultaneous aggressive MRI. This stability enables demanding applications such as kinetic modeling.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Gary H Glover
- Radiology Department, Stanford University, Stanford, California
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20
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Xi D, Liu X, Zeng C, Liu W, Li Y, Hua Y, Mei X, Kim H, Xiao P, Kao CM, Xie Q. Modularized compact positron emission tomography detector for rapid system development. J Med Imaging (Bellingham) 2017; 4:011006. [PMID: 28018941 PMCID: PMC5169362 DOI: 10.1117/1.jmi.4.1.011006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2016] [Accepted: 11/21/2016] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
We report the development of a modularized compact positron emission tomography (PET) detector that outputs serial streams of digital samples of PET event pulses via an Ethernet interface using the UDP/IP protocol to enable rapid configuration of a PET system by connecting multiple such detectors via a network switch to a computer. Presently, the detector is [Formula: see text] in extent (excluding I/O connectors) and contains an [Formula: see text] array of [Formula: see text] one-to-one coupled lutetium-yttrium oxyorthosilicate/silicon photomultiplier pixels. It employs cross-wire and stripline readouts to merge the outputs of the 216 detector pixels to 24 channels. Signals at these channels are sampled using a built-in 24-ch, 4-level field programmable gate arrays-only multivoltage threshold digitizer. In the computer, software programs are implemented to analyze the digital samples to extract event information and to perform energy qualification and coincidence filtering. We have developed two such detectors. We show that all their pixels can be accurately discriminated and measure a crystal-level energy resolution of 14.4% to 19.4% and a detector-level coincidence time resolution of 1.67 ns FWHM. Preliminary imaging results suggests that a PET system based on the detectors can achieve an image resolution of [Formula: see text].
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Affiliation(s)
- Daoming Xi
- Raycan Technology Co., Ltd., Building 17, 8 Jinfeng Road, SND, Suzhou, Jiangsu 215163, China
| | - Xiang Liu
- Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Luoyu Road 1037, Wuhan, Hubei 430074, China
| | - Chen Zeng
- Raycan Technology Co., Ltd., Building 17, 8 Jinfeng Road, SND, Suzhou, Jiangsu 215163, China
- Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Luoyu Road 1037, Wuhan, Hubei 430074, China
| | - Wei Liu
- Raycan Technology Co., Ltd., Building 17, 8 Jinfeng Road, SND, Suzhou, Jiangsu 215163, China
| | - Yanzhao Li
- Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Luoyu Road 1037, Wuhan, Hubei 430074, China
| | - Yuexuan Hua
- Raycan Technology Co., Ltd., Building 17, 8 Jinfeng Road, SND, Suzhou, Jiangsu 215163, China
- Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Luoyu Road 1037, Wuhan, Hubei 430074, China
| | - Xiongze Mei
- Raycan Technology Co., Ltd., Building 17, 8 Jinfeng Road, SND, Suzhou, Jiangsu 215163, China
- Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Luoyu Road 1037, Wuhan, Hubei 430074, China
| | - Heejong Kim
- University of Chicago, Department of Radiology, 5841 South Maryland Avenue, MC-2026, Chicago, Illinois 60637, United States
| | - Peng Xiao
- Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Luoyu Road 1037, Wuhan, Hubei 430074, China
- Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics, Luoyu Road 1037, Wuhan, Hubei 430074, China
| | - Chien-Min Kao
- University of Chicago, Department of Radiology, 5841 South Maryland Avenue, MC-2026, Chicago, Illinois 60637, United States
| | - Qingguo Xie
- Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Luoyu Road 1037, Wuhan, Hubei 430074, China
- Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics, Luoyu Road 1037, Wuhan, Hubei 430074, China
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21
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Kwon SI, Ferri A, Gola A, Berg E, Piemonte C, Cherry SR, Roncali E. Reaching 200-ps timing resolution in a time-of-flight and depth-of-interaction positron emission tomography detector using phosphor-coated crystals and high-density silicon photomultipliers. J Med Imaging (Bellingham) 2016; 3:043501. [PMID: 27921069 DOI: 10.1117/1.jmi.3.4.043501] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2016] [Accepted: 10/28/2016] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Current research in the field of positron emission tomography (PET) focuses on improving the sensitivity of the scanner with thicker detectors, extended axial field-of-view, and time-of-flight (TOF) capability. These create the need for depth-of-interaction (DOI) encoding to correct parallax errors. We have proposed a method to encode DOI using phosphor-coated crystals. Our initial work using photomultiplier tubes (PMTs) demonstrated the possibilities of the proposed method, however, a major limitation of PMTs for this application is poor quantum efficiency in yellow light, corresponding to the wavelengths of the converted light by the phosphor coating. In contrast, the red-green-blue-high-density (RGB-HD) silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs) have a high photon detection efficiency across the visible spectrum. Excellent coincidence resolving time (CRT; [Formula: see text]) was obtained by coupling RGB-HD SiPMs and [Formula: see text] lutetium fine silicate crystals coated on a third of one of their lateral sides. Events were classified in three DOI bins ([Formula: see text] width) with an average sensitivity of 83.1%. A CRT of [Formula: see text] combined with robust DOI encoding is a marked improvement in the phosphor-coated approach that we pioneered. For the first time, we read out these crystals with SiPMs and clearly demonstrated the potential of the RGB-HD SiPMs for this TOF-DOI PET detector.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sun Il Kwon
- University of California Davis , Department of Biomedical Engineering, Davis, California 95616, United States
| | | | - Alberto Gola
- Fondazione Bruno Kessler , via Sommarive 18, Trento, Italy
| | - Eric Berg
- University of California Davis , Department of Biomedical Engineering, Davis, California 95616, United States
| | | | - Simon R Cherry
- University of California Davis , Department of Biomedical Engineering, Davis, California 95616, United States
| | - Emilie Roncali
- University of California Davis , Department of Biomedical Engineering, Davis, California 95616, United States
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22
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Abstract
The response of a Silicon Photomultiplier (SiPM) to optical signals is affected by many factors including photon-detection efficiency, recovery time, gain, optical crosstalk, afterpulsing, dark count, and detector dead time. Many of these parameters vary with overvoltage and temperature. When used to detect scintillation light, there is a complicated non-linear relationship between the incident light and the response of the SiPM. In this paper, we propose a combined discrete-time discrete-event Monte Carlo (MC) model to simulate SiPM response to scintillation light pulses. Our MC model accounts for all relevant aspects of the SiPM response, some of which were not accounted for in the previous models. We also derive and validate analytic expressions for the single-photoelectron response of the SiPM and the voltage drop across the quenching resistance in the SiPM microcell. These analytic expressions consider the effect of all the circuit elements in the SiPM and accurately simulate the time-variation in overvoltage across the microcells of the SiPM. Consequently, our MC model is able to incorporate the variation of the different SiPM parameters with varying overvoltage. The MC model is compared with measurements on SiPM-based scintillation detectors and with some cases for which the response is known a priori. The model is also used to study the variation in SiPM behavior with SiPM-circuit parameter variations and to predict the response of a SiPM-based detector to various scintillators.
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Affiliation(s)
- Abhinav K Jha
- College of Optical Sciences, University of Arizona, Tucson AZ 85721 USA
| | - Herman T van Dam
- Department of Radiation, Detection and Medical Imaging, Delft University of Technology, Delft, 2629 JB, The Netherlands
| | - Matthew A Kupinski
- College of Optical Sciences and the Department of Medical Imaging, University of Arizona, Tucson AZ 85721 USA
| | - Eric Clarkson
- College of Optical Sciences and the Department of Medical Imaging, University of Arizona, Tucson AZ 85721 USA
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23
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Bircher C, Shao Y. Investigation of Crystal Surface Finish and Geometry on Single LYSO Scintillator Detector Performance for Depth-of-Interaction Measurement with Silicon Photomultipliers. Nucl Instrum Methods Phys Res A 2012; 693:236-243. [PMID: 23087497 PMCID: PMC3475527 DOI: 10.1016/j.nima.2012.07.029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/01/2023]
Abstract
Depth of Interaction (DOI) information can improve quality of reconstructed images acquired from Positron Emission Tomography (PET), especially in high resolution and compact scanners dedicated for breast, brain, or small animal imaging applications. Additionally, clinical scanners with time of flight capability can also benefit from DOI information. One of the most promising methods of determining DOI in a crystal involves reading the signal from two ends of a scintillation crystal, and calculating the signal ratio between the two detectors. This method is known to deliver a better DOI resolution with rough crystals compared to highly polished crystals. However, what is still not well studied is how much of a tradeoff is involved between spatial, energy, temporal, and DOI resolutions as a function of the crystal surface treatment and geometry with the use of Silicon Photomultipliers (SiPM) as the photo detectors. This study investigates the effects of different crystal surface finishes and geometries on energy, timing and DOI resolutions at different crystal depths. The results show that for LYSO scintillators of 1.5×1.5×20 mm(3) and 2×2×20 mm(3) with their surfaces finished from 0.5 to 30 micron roughness, almost the same energy and coincidence timing resolutions were maintained, around 15% and 2.4 ns respectively across different crystal depths, while the DOI resolutions were steadily improved from worse than 5 mm to better than 2 mm. They demonstrate that crystal roughness, with proper surface preparing, does not have a significant effect on the energy and coincidence timing resolutions in the crystals examined, and there does not appear to be a tradeoff between improving DOI resolution and degrading other detector performances. These results will be valuable to guide the selection of crystal surface conditions for developing a DOI measurable PET detector with a full array of LYSO scintillators coupled to SiPM arrays.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chad Bircher
- Department of Imaging Physics, M.D. Anderson Cancer Research Center, 1515 Holcombe Boulevard, Unit 1902, Houston, Texas 77030-4009, USA
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24
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Li H, Lopes N, Moser S, Sayler G, Ripp S. Silicon photomultiplier (SPM) detection of low-level bioluminescence for the development of deployable whole-cell biosensors: possibilities and limitations. Biosens Bioelectron 2012; 33:299-303. [PMID: 22305444 PMCID: PMC4593402 DOI: 10.1016/j.bios.2012.01.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/10/2011] [Revised: 12/14/2011] [Accepted: 01/06/2012] [Indexed: 10/14/2022]
Abstract
Whole-cell bacterial bioreporters await miniaturized photon counting modules with high sensitivity and robust compatible hardware to fulfill their promise of versatile, on-site biosensor functionality. In this study, we explore the photon counting readout properties of the silicon photomultiplier (SPM) with a thermoelectric cooler and the possibilities of detecting low-level bioluminescent signals. Detection performance was evaluated through a simulated LED light source and the bioluminescence produced by the genetically engineered Pseudomonas fluorescens bacterial bioreporter 5RL. Compared with the conventional photomultiplier tube (PMT), the results revealed that the cooled SPM exhibits a wider linear response to inducible substrate concentrations (salicylate) ranging from 250 to 5000 ppb. Although cooling of the SPM lowered dark count rates and improved the minimum detectable signal, and the application of a digital filter enhanced the signal-to-noise ratio, the detection of very low light signals is still limited and remains a challenge in the design of compact photon counting systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huaqing Li
- The Center for Environmental Biotechnology and the Department of Microbiology, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA
| | - Nicholas Lopes
- The Center for Environmental Biotechnology and the Department of Microbiology, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA
| | - Scott Moser
- The Center for Environmental Biotechnology and the Department of Microbiology, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA
| | - Gary Sayler
- The Center for Environmental Biotechnology and the Department of Microbiology, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA
| | - Steven Ripp
- The Center for Environmental Biotechnology and the Department of Microbiology, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA
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25
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Privitera S, Tudisco S, Lanzanò L, Musumeci F, Pluchino A, Scordino A, Campisi A, Cosentino L, Finocchiaro P, Condorelli G, Mazzillo M, Lombardo S, Sciacca E. Single Photon Avalanche Diodes: Towards the Large Bidimensional Arrays. Sensors (Basel) 2008; 8:4636-4655. [PMID: 27873777 PMCID: PMC3705463 DOI: 10.3390/s8084636] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2008] [Revised: 08/01/2008] [Accepted: 08/05/2008] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Single photon detection is one of the most challenging goals of photonics. In recent years, the study of ultra-fast and/or low-intensity phenomena has received renewed attention from the academic and industrial communities. Intense research activity has been focused on bio-imaging applications, bio-luminescence, bio-scattering methods, and, more in general, on several applications requiring high speed operation and high timing resolution. In this paper we present design and characterization of bi-dimensional arrays of a next generation of single photon avalanche diodes (SPADs). Single photon sensitivity, dark noise, afterpulsing and timing resolution of the single SPAD have been examined in several experimental conditions. Moreover, the effects arising from their integration and the readout mode have also been deeply investigated.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simona Privitera
- INFN-Laboratori Nazionali del Sud, via Santa Sofia 65, 95125 Catania (Italy).
- DMFCI-Dip. Met. Chim. Fis. Ing. & Dip. di Fisica ed Astronomia, Università di Catania viale A. Doria 6, 95125 Catania, (Italy).
| | - Salvatore Tudisco
- INFN-Laboratori Nazionali del Sud, via Santa Sofia 65, 95125 Catania (Italy).
- DMFCI-Dip. Met. Chim. Fis. Ing. & Dip. di Fisica ed Astronomia, Università di Catania viale A. Doria 6, 95125 Catania, (Italy).
| | - Luca Lanzanò
- INFN-Laboratori Nazionali del Sud, via Santa Sofia 65, 95125 Catania (Italy).
- DMFCI-Dip. Met. Chim. Fis. Ing. & Dip. di Fisica ed Astronomia, Università di Catania viale A. Doria 6, 95125 Catania, (Italy).
| | - Francesco Musumeci
- INFN-Laboratori Nazionali del Sud, via Santa Sofia 65, 95125 Catania (Italy).
- DMFCI-Dip. Met. Chim. Fis. Ing. & Dip. di Fisica ed Astronomia, Università di Catania viale A. Doria 6, 95125 Catania, (Italy).
| | - Alessandro Pluchino
- DMFCI-Dip. Met. Chim. Fis. Ing. & Dip. di Fisica ed Astronomia, Università di Catania viale A. Doria 6, 95125 Catania, (Italy).
| | - Agata Scordino
- INFN-Laboratori Nazionali del Sud, via Santa Sofia 65, 95125 Catania (Italy).
- DMFCI-Dip. Met. Chim. Fis. Ing. & Dip. di Fisica ed Astronomia, Università di Catania viale A. Doria 6, 95125 Catania, (Italy).
| | - Angelo Campisi
- INFN-Laboratori Nazionali del Sud, via Santa Sofia 65, 95125 Catania (Italy).
| | - Luigi Cosentino
- INFN-Laboratori Nazionali del Sud, via Santa Sofia 65, 95125 Catania (Italy).
| | - Paolo Finocchiaro
- INFN-Laboratori Nazionali del Sud, via Santa Sofia 65, 95125 Catania (Italy).
| | | | - Massimo Mazzillo
- R&D, ST-Microelectronics, Stradale Primosole 50, 95100 Catania (Italy).
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