Many improvements have been made to amorphous silicon (a-Si) flat panel detectors (FPDs) to meet the market needs for different x-ray imaging applications. With the current generation of a-Si FPDs the performance is limited by the a-Si thin film transistors (TFTs). The low electron mobility of a-Si necessitates large TFT’s with large parasitic dataline capacitance, which increases electronic noise and reduces the pixel fill factor (FF). In other words, large TFT’s negatively impact Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR). CMOS FPDs were introduced to provide improved low dose imaging performance and faster readout times, but the increase in cost can be prohibitive. IGZO TFTs have an electron mobility that is <10x higher than a-Si, which facilitates a reduction in the size of the TFT while also reducing the pixel discharge time, resulting in an increase to both the detector readout rate and the SNR. Reducing the TFT size is particularly important in achieving adequate low dose performance in dynamic detectors with pixels approaching 100μm. A 31cm x 31cm (100μm) FPD using IGZO TFTs was evaluated at 25 frames/second (fps) in 1x1, 2x2, 3x3, and 4x4 binning. In the 1x1 standard noise configuration, the noise equivalent dose (NED) was 24nGy with a max linear dose (MLD) of 10uGy. The NED was reduced to 6.6nGy in the 2x2, 3.4nGy in the 3x3, and 2.4nGy in the 4x4 mode. The linearity of the IGZO imager was comparable to a-Si imager. The 1x1 MTF was 57.5% at 1 lp/mm and 28.5% at 2lp/mm. The quantum limited DQE in the 1x1 binning mode was 79% at 0 lp/mm and 47% at 1 lp/mm. The 1x1 DQE measured at NED was 71% at 0 lp/mm, 29% at 1 lp/mm. This paper will explore how to optimally employ IGZO and present data from a first IGZO imager, showing that IGZO is an excellent technology for the future of FPDs.
Complementary metal-oxide-semiconductors (CMOS) flat panel detectors (FPD) have steadily gained acceptance into medical imaging applications1-15. Selecting the proper detector technology for the imaging task requires optimization to balance the cost and the image quality. To facilitate this, fundamental detector performance of CMOS and a-Si panels were evaluated using the following quantitative imaging metrics: X-ray sensitivity, Noise Equivalent Dose (NED,) Noise Power Spectrum (NPS), Modulation Transfer Function (MTF), and Detective Quantum Efficiency (DQE). Imaging task measurements involved high-contrast and low-contrast resolution assessment. Varex FPDs evaluated for this study included: CMOS 3131 (150 μm pixel), a-Si 3030X (194 μm pixel), a-Si XRpad2 3025 (100 μm) and CMOS 2020 (100 μm pixel). Performance comparisons were organized by pixel size: large pixels, 150 μm CMOS and 194 μm a-Si, and small pixels, 100 μm in a-Si and CMOS technology. The results showed high dose DQE of the a-Si 3030X was about 10% higher than the CMOS 3131 between 0 - 1.8 cycles/mm, while beyond 1.8 cycles/mm, the CMOS performed better. The 3030X low dose DQE was higher than the 3131 between 0-1.3 cycles/mm, while the CMOS performance was higher beyond 1.3 cycles/mm. The high dose DQE of 100 μm a-Si was higher than the 100 μm CMOS for all frequencies. However, the low dose DQE of 100 μm CMOS was higher beyond 0.6 cycles/mm, while the 100 μm a-Si pixel had higher DQE only between 0 – 0.6 cycles/mm. Large pixel image quality (IQ) assessment favored a-Si pixel with 7% higher Contrast-to-Noise-Ratio (CNR) results for both high and low contrast-detail at 500 nGy. Small pixel CNR favored CMOS with ~38% better high contrast-detail and 12% greater low contrast-detail at ~500 nGy. Through these measurements that combine imaging metrics and image quality, we demonstrated a practical method for selecting the appropriate detector technology based on the requirements of the imaging applications.
Mammography systems demand high quality imaging at reduced acquisition times. The Varex 3024MX imager was designed specifically with the demands of mammographic imaging in mind: high spatial resolution, excellent low contrast resolution as well as excellent low dose performance, and acquisition speeds capable of tomography. This paper will describe the details of the next generation a-Si mammography sensor array and contrast the predicate product, PS3024M. The Varex 3024MX imager delivers a 3584x2816 matrix with a pixel pitch of 83um resulting in an active area of 297.5mm x 233.7mm., optimized for mammography applications. A 250um thick deposited columnar CsI(Tl) layer is used as the scintillator. The development of a new pixel architecture and charge amplifier ASIC allows for faster readout of the sensor array at 16 bit pixel depth. The faster readout of the Varex 3024MX enables readout speeds up to 10fps. In addition to the faster frame rates, the combination of the new pixel architecture and ASIC, result in a very low electronic noise floor and improved ghosting behavior. The results, as outlined below, will show that the 3024MX design targeted improvements to detective quantum efficiency (DQE), maximum linear dose (MLD), quantum-limited dose (QLD), ghosting, and image readout time.
Quantum-limited-dose (QLD) and noise-equivalent-dose (NED) are performance metrics often used interchangeably.
Although the metrics are related, they are not equivalent unless the treatment of electronic noise is carefully
considered. These metrics are increasingly important to properly characterize the low-dose performance of flat panel
detectors (FPDs). A system can be said to be quantum-limited when the Signal-to-noise-ratio (SNR) is proportional to
the square-root of x-ray exposure. Recent experiments utilizing three methods to determine the quantum-limited dose
range yielded inconsistent results. To investigate the deviation in results, generalized analytical equations are
developed to model the image processing and analysis of each method. We test the generalized expression for both
radiographic and fluoroscopic detectors. The resulting analysis shows that total noise content of the images processed
by each method are inherently different based on their readout scheme. Finally, it will be shown that the NED is
equivalent to the instrumentation-noise-equivalent-exposure (INEE) and furthermore that the NED is derived from the
quantum-noise-only method of determining QLD. Future investigations will measure quantum-limited performance of
radiographic panels with a modified readout scheme to allow for noise improvements similar to measurements
performed with fluoroscopic detectors.
The focus of this work was to improve the DQE performance of a
full-field digital mammography (FFDM) system by
means of selecting an optimal X-ray tube anode-filter combination in conjunction with an optimal scintillator
configuration. The flat panel detector in this work is a Varian PaxScan 3024M. The detector technology is comprised of
a 2816 row × 3584 column amorphous silicon (a-Si) photodiode array with a pixel pitch of 83μm. The scintillator is
cesium iodide and is deposited directly onto the photodiode array and available with configurable optical and x-ray
properties. Two X-ray beam spectra were generated with the anode/filter combinations, Molybdenum/Molybdenum
(Mo/Mo) and Tungsten/Aluminum (W/Al), to evaluate the imaging performance of two types of scintillators, high
resolution (HR) type and high light output (HL) type. The results for the HR scintillator with W/Al anode-filter (HRW/
Al) yielded a DQE(0) of 67%, while HR-Mo/Mo was lower with a DQE(0) of 50%. In addition, the DQE(0) of the
HR-W/Al configuration was comparable to the DQE(0) of the HL-Mo/Mo configuration. The significance of this result
is the HR type scintillator yields about twice the light output with the W/Al spectrum, at about half the dose, as
compared to the Mo/Mo spectrum. The light output or sensitivity was measured in analog-to-digital convertor units
(ADU) per dose. The sensitivities (ADU/uGy) were 8.6, 16.8 and 25.4 for HR-Mo/Mo, HR-W/Al, HL-Mo/Mo,
respectively. The Nyquist frequency for the 83 μm pixel is 6 lp/mm. The MTF at 5 lp/mm for HR-Mo/Mo and HR-W/Al
were equivalent at 37%, while the HL-Mo/Mo MTF was 24%. According to the DQE metric, the more favorable anodefilter
combination was W/Al with the HR scintillator. Future testing will evaluate the HL-W/Al configuration, as well as
other x-ray filters materials and other scintillator optimizations. While higher DQE values were achieved, the more
general conclusion is that the imaging performance can be tuned as required by the application by modifying optical and
x-ray properties of the scintillator to match the spectral output of the chosen anode-filter combination.
A unique 64-row flat panel (FP) detector has been developed for sub-second multidetector-row CT (MDCT). The intent
was to explore the image quality achievable with relatively inexpensive amorphous silicon (a-Si) compared to existing
diagnostic scanners with discrete crystalline diode detectors. The FP MDCT system is a bench-top design that consists
of three FP modules. Each module uses a 30 cm x 3.3 cm a-Si array with 576 x 64 photodiodes. The photodiodes are
0.52 mm x 0.52 mm, which allows for about twice the spatial resolution of most commercial MDCT scanners. The
modules are arranged in an overlapping geometry, which is sufficient to provide a full-fan 48 cm diameter scan. Scans
were obtained with various detachable scintillators, e.g. ceramic Gd2O2S, particle-in-binder Gd2O2S:Tb and columnar
CsI:Tl. Scan quality was evaluated with a Catphan-500 performance phantom and anthropomorphic phantoms. The FP
MDCT scans demonstrate nearly equivalent performance scans to a commercial 16-slice MDCT scanner at comparable
10 - 20 mGy/100mAs doses. Thus far, a high contrast resolution of 15 lp/cm and a low contrast resolution of 5 mm @
0.3 % have been achieved on 1 second scans. Sub-second scans have been achieved with partial rotations. Since the
future direction of MDCT appears to be in acquiring single organ coverage per scan, future efforts are planned for
increasing the number of detector rows beyond the current 64- rows.
This paper describes a new flat panel imager designed for use in cardiovascular and mobile C-arm imaging systems. The a-Si sensor array has a 1024 x 1024 matrix with a pixel pitch of 194 μm, resulting in an active area of 198.7 mm x 198.7 mm. The imager allows frame rates of up to 30 fps in full resolution fluoroscopy mode
and up to 60 fps in a 2 x 2 binned low dose fluoroscopy mode. Typically, a 600 μm thick deposited columnar CsI(Tl) layer is used as the scintillator.
Improvements in the pixel architecture, charge amplifier ASICs, and system level electronics resulted in a very low electronic noise floor, such that both the fluoroscopy and low dose fluoroscopy modes of the panel are x-ray quantum limited below 1 μR/frame.
Low power consumption electronics combined with a mechanical design optimized for heat transfer and dissipation makes air-cooling sufficient for most environments. The small size of 24.1 x 24.1 x 6 cm and the weight of only 4.1 kg meet the requirements of C-Arm systems. Special consideration was given to the border around the active area, which has been reduced to 2 cm. Reported performance parameters include linearity, lag, contrast ratio, MTF, and DQE. For the full resolution mode, the MTF is greater than 0.53 and 0.21 at 1
and 2 lp/mm, respectively. DQE measured at 22 nGy/frame was greater than 0.68, 0.50, and 0.23 at 0, 1, and 2 lp/mm, respectively.
Preliminary results are presented from the PaxScan 4030A; a 40x30cm, 2048 x 1536 landscape, flat panel imager, with 194um pixel pitch. This imager builds on our experience with the PaxScan 2520, a 127um real-time flat panel detector capable of both high-resolution radiography and low dose fluoroscopy. While the PS2520 has been applied in C-arms, neuroangiography, cardiac imaging and small area radiographic units, the larger active area of the PaxScan 4030A addresses the broader applications of angiography, general R&F and cone-beam CT. The PaxScan 4030A has the same electrical and software interfaces as the PS2520; however, a number of innovations have been incorporated into the 4030A to increase its versatility. The most obvious change is that the data interface between the receptor and command processor has been reduced to one very flexible and thin fiber-optic cable. A second new feature for the 4030A is the use of split datalines. Split datalines facilitate scanning the two halves of the array in parallel, cutting the readout time in half and increasing the time window for pulsed x-ray delivery to 15ms at 30fps. In addition, split datalines result in lower noise, which, coupled with the larger signal of the 194um pixels, enables high quality imaging at lower fluoroscopy doses rates.
This paper describes a third-generation multi-mode x-ray imager whose applications include low-dose fluoroscopy, cine, spot films, and radiography. In addition, volumetric CT and applications whose environment includes a 2 tesla magnetic field are also in development. The VIP-9 is based on an amorphous silicon TFT/Photodiode array and x-ray conversion screen, which is optionally a deposited CsI(Tl) film or a removable Gd2O2S screen. There are three primary modes of operation: RAD for high resolution radiographs and spot films; Fluoro for video rate, low dose fluoroscopy as well as cine; Zoom for high resolution, limited field of view (FOV) fluoroscopy. Through improved electronics, the imager has greater sensitivity at low doses and far better rejection of correlated line noise than its predecessors. In addition, the VIP-9 incorporates many ease-of-use features absent from earlier prototype imagers. While previous reports have primarily focused on the imager construction and noise issues in large area sensing technology, in this paper the emphasis is on features which facilitate integration into a complete imaging system and measures of image quality.
An amorphous silicon medical imaging system designed to operate in both radiographic and fluoroscopic modes is described. Images of medical phantoms are presented for both modes of operation. MTF and DQE measurements are also presented. The effect of recursive filtering on the DQE performance of the system operating in fluoroscopic mode is discussed.
This paper describes a multi-mode, digital imager for real- time x-ray applications. The imager has three modes of operation: low dose fluoroscopy, zoom fluoroscopy, and high resolution radiography. These modes trade-off resolution or field-of-view for frame rate and additionally optimize the sensitivity of the imager to match the x-ray dose used in each mode. This large area sensing technology has a form factor similar to that of a film cassette, no geometric image distortion, no sensitivity to magnetic fields, a very large dynamic range which eliminates repeat shots due to over or under exposure, 12 bit digital output and the ability to switch between operating modes in real-time. The imager, which consists of three modules: the Receptor, the Power Supply and the Command Processor, is intended as a component in a larger imaging system. Preliminary characterization of the prototype imager in fluoroscopic mode at entrance exposure rates down to 2.5 (mu) R/frame, indicates that the DQE(f), MTF and low contrast resolution are comparable to that obtained with an image intensifier tube (IIT) coupled to a video camera.
This paper describes a real-time image processing system for correction and enhancement of fluoroscopic (video X-ray) image data obtained from a large area, flat-panel, solid- state medical image sensor. The amorphous silicon sensor is 1536 X 1920 pixels, measuring 20 X 25 cm; for operation at 30 frames per second, the real pixel data rate is approximately 45 MB/sec.
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