Evaluation of a modular all-in-one high-resolution PET detector and readout electronics setup

Objective. The all-in-one solution and modularity of the C13500 series TOF-PET detector modules (Hamamatsu Photonics K.K., Hamamatsu, Japan) make them a highly attractive candidate for the development of positron emission tomography (PET) systems. However, the commercially available portfolio targets clinical whole-body PET systems with a scintillation crystal cross area of 3.1 × 3.1 mm. To extend the modules for high resolution (preclinical or organ specific) systems, the support for smaller scintillation crystals is required. Approach. In this work, a PET detector was developed based on the TOF-PET modules using a light sharing approach, 16 × 16 lutetium oxyorthosilicate (LSO) scintillation crystals with a size of 1.51 × 1.51 × 10.00 mm readout with 8 × 8 photosensor channels of size 3.0 × 3.0 mm. In addition to hardware and software development, the optimized parameter settings for the adapted configuration were evaluated. Main Results. A factor of two in amplification of the analog signal compared to the minimum gain setting was necessary for an accurate crystal identification (peak-to-valley ratio 14.9 ± 5.9). A further increase to a factor of three was not determined as optimum as the time over threshold duration, thus pile-up probability, increased from 1032.1 ± 109.5 to 1789.5 ± 218.5 ns (photopeak position). With this amplification a full width at half maximum (FWHM) energy resolution of 14.1 ± 2.0% and a high linearity of the energy detection was obtained. A FWHM coincidence resolving time (CRT) of 313 ps was achieved by using a low timing threshold, increasing the bandwidth of the front-end circuit and using a narrow ± 1σ energy window. To approximately double the sensitivity and reduce the power consumption, the timing parameters were adjusted resulting in a FWHM CRT of 354 ps (±2σ). Significance. Based on the results obtained with the proof-of-concept detector setup, we confirm the modularity and flexibility of the all-in-one TOF-PET detector modules for the future development of application-specific high-resolution PET systems.