• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.53 no.1
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• pp.199-207
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• 2021

This paper deals with accurate image reconstruction of gamma camera using a coded-aperture mask based on pixel-type CsI(Tl) scintillator coupled with silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs) array. Coded-aperture imaging (CAI) system typically has a smaller effective viewing angle than Compton camera. Thus, if the position of the gamma source to be searched is out of the fully-coded field-of-view (FCFOV) region of the CAI system, artifacts can be generated when the image is reconstructed by using the conventional cross-correlation (CC) method. In this work, we propose an effective method for more accurate reconstruction in CAI considering the source distribution of partially-coded field-of-view (PCFOV) in the reconstruction in attempt to overcome this drawback. We employed an iterative algorithm based on compressed-sensing (CS) and compared the reconstruction quality with that of the CC algorithm. Both algorithms were implemented and performed a systematic Monte Carlo simulation to demonstrate the possiblilty of the proposed method. The reconstructed image qualities were quantitatively evaluated in sense of the root mean square error (RMSE) and the peak signal-to-noise ratio (PSNR). Our simulation results indicate that the proposed method provides more accurate location information of the simulated gamma source than the CC-based method.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.53 no.4
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• pp.1259-1265
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• 2021

In the present study, a large-area hybrid gamma imaging system was designed by adopting coded aperture imaging on the basis of a large-area Compton camera to achieve high imaging performance throughout a broad energy range (100-2000 keV). The system consisting of a tungsten coded aperture mask and monolithic NaI(Tl) scintillation detectors was designed through a series of Geant4 Monte Carlo radiation transport simulations, in consideration of both imaging sensitivity and imaging resolution. Then, the performance of the system was predicted by Geant4 Monte Carlo simulations for point sources under various conditions. Our simulation results show that the system provides very high imaging sensitivity (i.e., low values for minimum detectable activity, MDA), thus allowing for imaging of low-activity sources at distances impossible with coded aperture imaging or Compton imaging alone. In addition, the imaging resolution of the system was found to be high (i.e., around 6°) over the broad energy range of 59.5-1330 keV.

• IEIE Transactions on Smart Processing and Computing
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• v.6 no.1
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• pp.66-70
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• 2017

Radioactive materials are used in medicine, non-destructive testing, and nuclear plants. Source localization is especially important during nuclear decommissioning and decontamination because the actual location of the radioactive source within nuclear waste is often unknown. The coded-aperture imaging technique started with space exploration and moved into X-ray and gamma ray imaging, which have imaging process characteristics similar to each other. In this study, we simulated $21{\times}21$ and $37{\times}37$ coded aperture collimators based on a modified uniformly redundant array (MURA) pattern to make a gamma imaging system that can localize a gamma-ray source. We designed a $21{\times}21$ coded aperture collimator that matches our gamma imaging detector and did feasibility experiments with the coded aperture imaging system. We evaluated the performance of each collimator, from 2 mm to 10 mm thicknesses (at 2 mm intervals) using root mean square error (RMSE) and sensitivity in a simulation. In experimental results, the full width half maximum (FWHM) of the point source was $5.09^{\circ}$ at the center and $4.82^{\circ}$ at the location of the source was $9^{\circ}$. We will continue to improve the decoding algorithm and optimize the collimator for high-energy gamma rays emitted from a nuclear power plant.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.257-261
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• 2004

A coded-aperture gamma camera was developed to increase the sensitivity of a pin hole camera made with a pixellated CsI(Tl) scintillator and a position-sensitive photomultiplier tube. The modified round-hole uniformly redundant array of pixel size $13{\times}11$ was chosen as a coded mask considering the detector spatial resolution. The performance of the coded-aperture camera was compared with the pin hole camera using various forms of Tc-99m source to see the improvement of signal-to-noise ratio or the improvement of the sensitivity. The image quality is much improved despite of a slight degradation of the spatial resolution. Though the camera and the test were made for low energy case, but the concept of the coded-aperture gamma camera could be effectively used for the radioactive environmental monitoring and other applications.

• Progress in Medical Physics
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.247-255
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• 2008

A coded aperture camera has been developed to improve the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) while keeping the spatial resolution of a pinhole gamma camera. The purpose of this study was to optimize a coded aperture camera and to evaluate its possibility for thyroid imaging by Monte Carlo simulation. A clinical gamma camera, a pinhole collimator with 1.0 mm hole diameter, and a $79{\times}79$ modified uniformly redundant array (MURA) mask were designed using GATE (Geant4 Application for Tomographic Emission). The penetration ratio, spatial resolution, integral uniformity and signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) were simulated and evaluated as a function of the mask thickness. The spatial resolution of the coded aperture camera was consistent with the various mask thickness, SNR showed a maximum value at 1.2 mm mask thickness and integral uniformity was improved by increasing mask thickness. Compare to the pinhole gamma camera, the coded aperture camera showed improved SNR by a factor of 30 while keeping almost the same spatial resolution. In this simulation study, the results indicated that high spatial resolution and ultra-high SNR of the thyroid imaging are feasible using a coded aperture camera.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.52 no.10
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• pp.2250-2261
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• 2020

Accurate localization of radioactive materials is crucial in homeland security and radiological emergencies. Coded-aperture gamma camera is an interesting solution for such applications and can be developed into portable real-time imaging devices. However, traditional reconstruction methods cannot effectively deal with signal-independent noise, thereby hindering low-noise real-time imaging. In this study, a novel reconstruction method with excellent noise-suppression capability based on a multi-layer perceptron (MLP) is proposed. A coded-aperture gamma camera based on pixel detector and coded-aperture mask was constructed, and the process of radioactive source imaging was simulated. Results showed that the MLP method performs better in noise suppression than the traditional correlation analysis method. When the Co-57 source with an activity of 1 MBq was at 289 different positions within the field of view which correspond to 289 different pixels in the reconstructed image, the average contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) obtained by the MLP method was 21.82, whereas that obtained by the correlation analysis method was 5.85. The variance in CNR of the MLP method is larger than that of correlation analysis, which means the MLP method has some instability in certain conditions.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• v.47 no.4
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• pp.214-225
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• 2022

Background: The conventional cerium-doped Gd₂Al₂Ga₃O₁₂ (GAGG(Ce)) scintillator-based gamma-ray imager has a bulky detector, which can lead to incorrect positioning of the gammaray source if the shielding against background radiation is not appropriately designed. In addition, portability is important in complex environments such as inside nuclear power plants, yet existing gamma-ray imager based on a tungsten mask tends to be weighty and therefore difficult to handle. Motivated by the need to develop a system that is not sensitive to background radiation and is portable, we changed the material of the scintillator and the coded aperture. Materials and Methods: The existing GAGG(Ce) was replaced with Bi₄Ge₃O₁₂ (BGO), a scintillator with high gamma-ray detection efficiency but low energy resolution, and replaced the tungsten (W) used in the existing coded aperture with lead (Pb). Each BGO scintillator is pixelated with 144 elements (12 × 12), and each pixel has an area of 4 mm × 4 mm and the scintillator thickness ranges from 5 to 20 mm (5, 10, and 20 mm). A coded aperture consisting of Pb with a thickness of 20 mm was applied to the BGO scintillators of all thicknesses. Results and Discussion: Spectroscopic characterization, imaging performance, and image quality evaluation revealed the 10 mm-thick BGO scintillators enabled the portable gamma-ray imager to deliver optimal performance. Although its performance is slightly inferior to that of existing GAGG(Ce)-based gamma-ray imager, the results confirmed that the manufacturing cost and the system's overall weight can be reduced. Conclusion: Despite the spectral characteristics, imaging system performance, and image quality is slightly lower than that of GAGG(Ce), the results show that BGO scintillators are preferable for gamma-ray imaging systems in terms of cost and ease of deployment, and the proposed design is well worth applying to systems intended for use in areas that do not require high precision.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.53 no.4
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• pp.1266-1276
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• 2021

The mask parameters of a coded aperture are critical design features when optimizing the performance of a gamma-ray camera. In this paper, experiments and Monte Carlo simulations were performed to derive the minimum detectable activity (MDA) when one seeks a real-time imaging capability. First, the impact of the thickness of the modified uniformly redundant array (MURA) mask on the image quality is quantified, and the imaging of point, line, and surface radiation sources is demonstrated using both cross-correlation (CC) and maximum likelihood expectation maximization (MLEM) methods. Second, the minimum detectable activity is also derived for real-time imaging by altering the factors used in the image quality assessment, consisting of the peak-to-noise ratio (PSNR), the normalized mean square error (NMSE), the spatial resolution (full width at half maximum; FWHM), and the structural similarity (SSIM), all evaluated as a function of energy and mask thickness. Sufficiently sharp images were reconstructed when the mask thickness was approximately 2 cm for a source energy between 30 keV and 1.5 MeV and the minimum detectable activity for real-time imaging was 23.7 MBq at 1 m distance for a 1 s collection time.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.52 no.11
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• pp.2572-2580
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• 2020

Emerging gamma ray detection applications that utilize neutron-based interrogation result in the prompt emission of high-energy (>2 MeV) gamma-rays. Rapid imaging is enabled by scintillators that possess high density, high atomic number, and excellent energy resolution. In this paper, we evaluate the bright (50,000 photons/MeV) oxide scintillator, cerium-doped Gd₂Al₂Ga₃O₁₂ (GAGG(Ce)). A silicon photomultiplier (SiPM) array is coupled to a GAGG(Ce) scintillator array (12 × 12 pixels) and integrated into a coded-aperture based gamma-ray imaging system. A resistor-based symmetric charge division circuit was used reduce the multiplicity of the analog outputs from 144 to 4. The developed system exhibits 9.1%, 8.3%, and 8.0% FWHM energy resolutions at 511 keV, 662 keV, and 1173.2 keV, respectively. In addition, a pixel-identification resolution of 602 ㎛ FWHM was obtained from the GAGG(Ce) scintillator array.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.55 no.5
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• pp.1677-1686
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• 2023

As the demand for the detection of special nuclear materials (SNMs) increases, the use of imaging instruments that can sensitively image both gamma-ray and neutron signatures has become necessary. This study compared the pulse shape discrimination (PSD) performance of gamma/neutron events when employing either a pixelated stilbene or a plastic (EJ-276) scintillator array coupled to a silicon photomultiplier (SiPM) array in a dual-particle imager. The stilbene array allowed a lower energy threshold above which neutron and gamma-ray events can be clearly distinguished. A greater number of events can, therefore, be used when forming both gamma-ray and neutron images, which shortens the time required to acquire the images by nearly seven times.