title: Medipix-based Spectral Micro-CT.
abstract: Since Hounsfield's Nobel Prize winning breakthrough decades ago, X-ray CT has been widely applied in the clinical and preclinical applications - producing a huge number of tomographic gray-scale images. However, these images are often insufficient to distinguish crucial differences needed for diagnosis. They have poor soft tissue contrast due to inherent photon-count issues, involving high radiation dose. By physics, the X-ray spectrum is polychromatic, and it is now feasible to obtain multi-energy, spectral, or true-color, CT images. Such spectral images promise powerful new diagnostic information. The emerging Medipix technology promises energy-sensitive, high-resolution, accurate and rapid X-ray detection. In this paper, we will review the recent progress of Medipix-based spectral micro-CT with the emphasis on the results obtained by our team. It includes the state- of-the-art Medipix detector, the system and method of a commercial MARS (Medipix All Resolution System) spectral micro-CT, and the design and color diffusion of a hybrid spectral micro-CT.
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, Division of Radiologic Sciences, Wake Forest University Health Sciences, Winston-Salem, NC, 27157, USA ; Biomedical Imaging Division, VT-WFU School of Biomedical Engineering and Sciences, Wake Forest University Health Sciences, Winston-Salem, NC, 27157, USA ; Biomedical Imaging Division, VT-WFU School of Biomedical Engineering and Sciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA.
authors.forename: Hengyong
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.forename: Qiong
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.forename: Peng
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: He
authors.forename: James
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bennett
authors.forename: Raja
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Amir
authors.forename: Bruce
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Dobbs
authors.forename: Xuanqin
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Mou
authors.forename: Biao
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Wei
authors.forename: Anthony
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Butler
authors.forename: Phillip
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Butler
authors.forename: Ge
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Wang
keywords: Medipix all resolution system (MARS); Medipix detector; Multi-energy; hybrid spectral micro-CT; principle component analysis; spectral imaging; statistical iteration reconstruction