Investigation of the slice sensitivity profile for step and shoot mode multi slice computed tomography英文文献.pdfVIP

Investigation of the slice sensitivity profile for step-and-shoot mode multi-slice computed tomography Jiang Hsieha) Applied Science Laboratory, GE Medical Systems, P.O. Box 414, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53201-0414 Received 8 September 2000; accepted for publication 7 February 2001 Multislice computed tomography MCT is one of the recent technology advancements in CT. Compared to single slice CT, MCT significantly improves examination time, x-ray tube efficiency, and contrast material utilization. Although the scan mode of MCT is predominately helical, step- and-shoot axial scans continue to be an important part of routine clinical protocols. In this paper, we present a detailed investigation on the slice sensitivity profile SSP of MCT in the step-and- shoot mode. Our investigation shows that, unlike single slice CT, the SSP for MCT exhibits multiple peaks and valleys resulting from intercell gaps between detector rows. To fully understand the characteristics of the SSP, we developed an analytical model to predict the behavior of MCT. We propose a simple experimental technique that can quickly and accurately measure SSP. The impact of the SSP on image artifacts and low contrast detectability is also investigated. © 2001 American Association of Physicists in Medicine. DOI: 10.1118/1.1359247 I. INTRODUCTION chasing, volume coverage is crucial and thicker slices have to be used. Computed tomography CT technology has undergone tre- The mechanism for adjusting slice thickness in MCT is mendous advancement in recent years. One of the most re- significantly different than in SCT. In SCT,