THE INVESTIGATION OF THE HIGH DENSITY MULTIWIRE PROPORTIONAL CHAMBER AS A DETECTOR FOR NEUTRAL PARTICLES

This paper describes a position sensitive multiwire proportional chamber with effective area of 200×200mm². The chamber combining with multi-layer lead γ-ray converter form a high density multiwire proportional chamber γ-ray detector. The lead converter is made in auniformly arranged matrix of 0.9mm diameter holes on a 1.1mm pitch. For 511keV photons the detection efficiency is 5.6%, and the spatial resolution is 1mm. The detector has been used in the investigation of positron camera, it also offers possibility for X-ray detection.     

Study of the Low Excited States of 72Ge

The radioactive decay of ⁷²Ga has been investigated by means of NaI-HpGe Compton-suppress spectrometer,and γ-γ coincidence measurements Performed with two HpGe detectors coupled to three-parameter(γ-γ-T) data acquisition system. 2.3×10⁷ coincidence events are collected. A new decay scheme of 72Ga including 26 levels,87 γ-rays is established. The extensive coincidence relationships are used to identify the γrays and levels of 72 Ge, such as new γ-rays of 225. 92, 826.97, 1349.71,1475. 32, 1667.91, 2105.28, 2247.39keV and new levels of 3248.01, 3396.27, 3806.10,3864.56keV. The unsure transitions of 112.59, 937.97, 2402.25, 2939.95keV and level of 2939.83keV are confirmed in thes work. No evidence has been observed for the existences of 113.5, 1155.7, 1192.4keV γ-rays and level of 3707.1keV. The transitiou of 317.72keV γ-ray is moved from 3757.26-3439. 51keV level to 3565.85-3248.01keV level.     

Luminescence and scintillation properties of Lu0.8Gd1.2SiO5:Ce and Lu1.8Gd0.2SiO5:Ce single crystals: A comparative study

The luminescence and scintillation properties of Lu_0.8Gd_1.2SiO₅:Ce and Lu_1.8Gd_0.2SiO₅:Ce single crystals are compared. At 662 keV γ-rays, light yield (LY) value of 29,800 ph/MeV obtained for Lu_1.8Gd_0.2SiO₅:Ce is much higher than that of 20,200 ph/MeV obtained for Lu_0.8Gd_1.2SiO₅:Ce. The energy resolution of 6.0% obtained for Lu_0.8Gd_1.2SiO₅:Ce is better than that of 7.7% for Lu_1.8Gd_0.2SiO₅:Ce due to its better intrinsic resolution and proportionality of LY. The LY and energy resolution for α-rays, as well as a LY ratio under excitation with α- and γ-rays (α/γ ratio) are also determined. The intrinsic LY and light loss coefficient under excitation with α- and γ-rays are evaluated. The photofraction at 662 keV γ-rays is also determined and discussed.     

Preliminary simulation studies on a cylindrical PEM scanner using GATE

In this paper, we investigate the performance of a cylindrical positron emission mammography (PEM) by simulation, in order to estimate its feasibility before implementation. A well-developed simulation package, Geant4 Application for Tomographic Emission (GATE), is used to simulate the scanner geometry and physical processes. The simulated PEM scanner is composed of 64 blocks axially arranged in 4 rings with an axial field-of-view (AFOV) of 12.8 cm and 16.6 cm in diameter. For each block, there is a 16×16 array of 2 mm×2 mm×15 mm lutetium yttrium oxyorthosilicate (LYSO) crystals. In the simulated measurements, the spatial resolution is at the center of the FOV of 1.73±0.07 mm (radial) and 1.81±0.08 mm (tangential), but of 4.83±0.09 mm (radial) and 4.37±0.07 mm (tangential) while 5 cm off the center. The central point source sensitivity (ACS) is 4.04% (1.50 Mcps/mCi) at an energy window of 350-650 keV. Moreover, the capillary and cylindrical sources are simulated coupled to breast phantoms for the scatter fraction (SF) and Noise Equivalent Count Rate (NECR) test. For a breast phantom with a 350-650 keV energy window, SF may reach the highest 32.95%, while NECR is degraded down to the lowest 255.71 kcps/mCi. Finally, we model a breast phantom embedded with two spheres of different activities. The reconstructed image gives good results despite a bit of difference in image contrast. Further, the image quality will be improved by scatter and random correction. All these test results indicate the feasibility of this PEM system for breast cancer detection.     

First positron experiments at NEPOMUC

The in-pile positron source NEutron induced POsitron source MUniCh (NEPOMUC) of the new Munich research reactor FRM-II is now operated at the nominal reactor power of 20 MW. Recently, intensity and positron beam profile measurements were performed at 30 eV and 1 keV, respectively. For this purpose, NaI-scintillators detect the 511 keV γ-radiation of positrons that annihilate at a removable target in the beam line. The beam profile is determined with a micro-channel plate detector and a CCD-camera. In the present arrangement of NEPOMUC's instrumentation the positron beam is connected to a coincident Doppler broadening (CDB) facility and to a positron induced Auger electron spectroscopy (PAES) analysis chamber. First experiments were carried out in order to show the performance of these new spectrometers. An overview of the positron beam facility is given and first experimental results of PAES are presented.     

Isomeric γ-ray transitions in 98Tc

Delayed γ-rays from ⁹⁸Tc have been observed following pulsed proton beam bombardment of an enriched ⁹⁸Mo target. The energies of the delayed γ-rays are 43.5 ± 0.5 keV and 21.8 ± 0.1 keV. Also seen are delayed Tc X-rays. These radiations all have the same half-life which has been measured to be 14.6 ± 0.7 μs. The 21.8 keV γ-ray is identified as the first excited state to ground state transition. An estimate of the internal conversion coefficients of the 21.8 and 43 keV decays suggests that both transitions are M1.     

高分辨率及高灵敏度小动物PET研究进展

作为一种高灵敏度且具有定量测量能力的功能分子影像技术,小动物PET越来越广泛地用于各种生物医学研究,例如疾病动物模型研究、新药物研发和新治疗方法评估等。首先回顾小动物PET成像系统的发展历史、效率和空间分辨率等性能的改进和产业化;其次,讨论了影响PET空间分辨率和效率的各种因素,包括晶体大小、探测器几何、正电子射程、光子非共线效应、图像重建算法和阻碍PET系统同时达到高空间分辨率和高效率的相互作用深度不确定效应;最后,介绍了小动物PET成像系统在以下几个方面的取得的最新进展:（1）高密度、小的光衰减常数和高光产额的闪烁晶体;（2）体积小、增益大、时间性能好、工作电压低和磁兼容的新型硅光电倍增管光探测器;（3）各种深度测量PET探测器,详细介绍了一个可达到分辨0.43 mm×0.43 mm×20 mm晶格和达到2.4 mm深度分辨率的双端读出探测器;（4）使用深度测量探测器的小动物PET成像系统,详细介绍了一个使用高分辨率双端读出探测器,全视野达到0.55 mm平均位置分辨率的小动物PET原型系统;（5）磁兼容插件式小动物PET成像系统和PET/MRI同时成像的优点;（6）小动物PET图像重建和数据校正的特点、传统的滤波反投影算法和新的迭代算法的优缺点和PET图像重建算法未来的发展方向。As the most sensitive and quantitative molecular imaging technique,small animal positron emission tomography (PET) has become a widely used tool in biomedical research such as in animal model of human disease,development of new drugs and the evaluation of new therapeutics.In this paper,first the history,the efforts to improve the spatial resolution and sensitivity as well as the commercialization process of small animal PET scanner are reviewed.Then the factors that affect the spatial resolution and sensitivity of PET scanner such as crystal size,detector geometry,positron range,photon noncollinearity and imaging reconstruction are discussed in detail.The depth of interaction effect which hinders the simultaneous achievement of PET spatial resolution and sensitivity are also discussed.Finally the recent progress made in the following areas of small animal PET instrumentation are introduced:(1) high density,short light decay constant and bright scintillator,(2) compact,high gain,good timing resolution,low bias voltage and MRI compatible silicon photomultiplier,(3) depth encoding detectors by using different methods,a detector using dual-ended readout,identifying 0.43 mm×0.43 mm×20 mm crystals and achieving a 2.4 mm depth of interaction resolution was introduced in detail,(4) small animal PET scanners using depth encoding detectors,a prototype scanner using high resolution dualended readout detectors and achieving an average of 0.55 mm spatial resolution in the whole field of view was introduced in detail.(5) MRI compatible small animal PET inserts and the advantage of simultaneous PET/MRI imaging,(6) image reconstruction and data correction of small animal PET,the filter back projection and iterative reconstruction algorithms are compared and a few key directions of PET image reconstruction will be presented.     

Luminescence and scintillation properties of advanced Lu3Al5O12:Pr3+ single crystal scintillators

In this paper we present the luminescence and scintillation properties of Lu₃Al₅O₁₂:Pr (LuAG:Pr) single crystals with Pr³⁺ concentration of 0.13 wt %, grown by the Czochralski method. The light yield and energy resolution were measured under 662 keV γ-ray excitation. The dominant emission band peaking at 310 nm with a shoulder at 370 nm was observed in the photoluminescence spectrum. High light yield of 24,500 ph/MeV and an energy resolution of 5.3 % were obtained for a 6 × 6 × 2 mm³ LuAG:Pr sample. Light yield dependence on sample height and shaping time was measured. The estimated photofraction in pulse height spectrum and total mass attenuation coefficient at 662 keV γ-rays were also determined and compared with the theoretical ones calculated using the WinXCom program.     

Study of the characteristics of a scintillation array and single pixels for nuclear medicine imaging applications

By using a pixelized Nal(T1) crystal array coupled to a R2486 PSPMT, the characteristics of the array and of a single pixel, such as the light output, energy resolution, peak-to-valley ratio (P/V) and imaging performance of the detector were studied. The pixel size of the NaI(TI) scintillation pixel array is 2 min×2 mm×5 mm. There are in total 484 pixels in a 22～22 matrix. In the pixel spectrum an average peak-to-valley ratio (P/V) of 16 was obtained. In the image of all the pixels, good values for the Peak-to-Valley ratios could be achieved, namely a mean of 17, a maximum of 45 and the average peak FWHM (the average value of intrinsic spatial resolution) of 2.3 mm. However, the PSPMT non-uniform response and the scintillation pixels array inhomogeneities degrade the imaging performance of the detector.     

Intense source of slow positrons from pulsed electron accelerators

A pulsed LINAC is used for pair production in a tantalum target of 2.5 radiation lengths in an energy range from 80 to 260 MeV. Several well-annealed tungsten vanes are placed immediately behind the target and thermalize a small fraction of the fast positrons. The slow positrons are extracted from the target region and magnetically guided over a distance of 17 m to the detector at the end of an S-shaped solenoid. Two Nal detectors with well-known detection efficiency are used to register the 511 keV annihilation-rays. To reduce pile-up effects 50 mm of Pb were placed in front of the detectors. At an average electron current of 1 A we could detect about 10⁷ slow positrons per second. The positron yield is proportional to the electron current, and shows an increase with the electron energy for our target. The positron energy distribution has a FWHM of 1.8 eV.     

Decay of Cd and levels of Ag

The γ-ray spectrum following the decay of ¹⁰⁴Cd has been investigated with Ge(Li) spectrometers. Two unreported γ-rays with energies of 625.2 and 709.2 keV were observed and placed in the proposed decay scheme.     

Measurement of the 50Cr(γ, n)49Cr cross section with monochromatic γ-rays

The ⁵⁰Cr(γ, n)⁴⁹Cr cross section has been measured over the energy range E_γ = 20.43 to E_γ = 22.22 MeV using monochromatic γ-rays from the ³H(p, γ)⁴He reaction and detecting the resulting ⁴⁹Cr positon activity. The γ-rays were monitored by a 12.7 cm × 15.2 cm NaI(Tl) crystal. The positon activity was determined by a coincidence detector consisting of two 7.62 cm × 7.62 cm NaI(Tl) crystals set on the annihilation radiation photopeaks. The γ-ray energy resolution was less than 110 keV over the whole energy range. Structure in the cross section was not observed.     

Messung der γ-Winkel-Verteilung nach dem Neutroneneinfang an polarisierten Tb159-Kernen

The anisotropy of high-energy capture γ-rays from polarized Tb¹⁵⁹ nuclei was measured. Polarization of Tb¹⁵⁹ was achieved by cooling single crystals of Terbium-Ethylsulfate toT=0.35 °K in an external field of 4 kOe. With the results of this measurement, it was possible to deduce the spins of 11 levels in Tb¹⁶⁰ between 64 keV and 767 keV. Furthermore theQ-value of the reaction Tb¹⁵⁹(n, γ) Tb¹⁶⁰ was determined to beQ=(6,374.0± 1.5) keV.     

Spin-parity assignments for the excited states of 91Nb from the 91Zr(p,nγ)91Nb reaction

The energy levels of ⁹¹Nb were studied by means of the (p, nγ) reaction. The de-excitation γ-rays were observed with a Ge(Li) detector in the proton energy range from 3.25 to 5.51 MeV in steps of about 30 keV. Resonances attributed to isobaric analog states in the compound system ⁹¹Nb were observed in the excitation functions of the de-excitation γ-rays. From an analysis of these analog resonances, a Hauser-Feshbach analysis and the γ-decay scheme, the spin-parities of the levels up to 2792.6 keV (22 levels) were assigned.     

The reaction 35Cl(n,γ)36Cl studied with non-polarized and polarized thermal neutrons

The γ-radiation following capture of non-polarized and polarized thermal neutrons in ³⁵Cl has been investigated. Of the 420 γ-rays ascribed to the ³⁵Cl(n,γ)³⁶Cl reaction, 236 have been placed in a ³⁶Cl decay scheme. The branching ratios and the excitation energies (with 0.04–0.9 keV errors) of 72 bound states have been determined. Unambiguous spin assignments are given for 11 levels. The multipole mixing ratios for some primary γ-ray transitions have been determined. There exists a significant correlation between (d, p) stripping strengths and (n, γ) reduced primary transition probabilities for transitions to l_n(d, p) = 0 levels.     

Mössbauer-type photoluminescence spectra of irradiated germamum

A Mössbauer-type structure has been observed in the 15°K spectra of germanium crystals irradiated at room temperature by Co⁶⁰ γ-rays and 700 keV electrons. The spectra consist of an intense band peaking at 0.688 eV accompanied by mainly TA-phonon-assisted lower energy sidebands. The transition producing the luminescence is believed to be the annihilation of an exciton bound to a defect center by forces of shorter range than coulombic attraction. The dependence of the new spectra upon irradiation temperature and certain sample characteristics indicate that the center contains both primary defect(s) and an unknown impurity.     

折衍混合光学系统超宽温消热差设计

利用折衍混合结构设计了超宽温范围内的光学被动式消热差Petzval物镜,系统工作波段为3.2～4.5 m,视场角为8.42,焦距为95 mm,后工作距为60.5 mm。使用锗和硅两种材料,引入了2个非球面和1个衍射面, 实现了消热差和结构简单轻量化,该系统在－80～200 ℃范围内, 调制传递函数(MTF) 优于0.7,接近衍射极限, 成像质量良好,该系统适用于像元尺寸为35 m、像元数320240的非制冷红外焦平面阵列探测器。     

Growth and Study of Scintillation Properties of Orthovanadate Crystals Ca:GdVO<Subscript>4</Subscript> and Ca:YVO<Subscript>4</Subscript>

New scintillation orthovanadate crystals Ca:GdVO₄ and Ca:YVO₄ featuring intrinsic luminescence are grown. The spectra of pulsed cathodoluminescence of new scintillators and their luminescence decay time are studied. Using γ-rays with an energy of 662 keV from the ¹³⁷Cs source, total absorption spectra (so-called photopeaks) for new orthovanadate crystals are measured. It is shown that the light yield of Ca:YVO₄ and Ca:GdVO₄ crystals is 28100 photon/MeV and 14000 photon/MeV, respectively.     

基于ZEMAX软件的DLP微型投影镜头的设计

 利用ZEMAX光学软件设计出了一款适用于0.55″单片DLP微型投影机的广角数字微型投影镜头。镜头结构由6组8片镜片组成,具有结构简单、体形小、易加工、成本低等特点。镜头的有效焦距为8.25 mm,相对孔径为1/2.2,全视场角为80.5°,最大口径小于24 mm,光学总长控制在40 mm,后工作距离为24 mm。镜头有较好的成像质量,在镜头的分辨率66 lp/mm处,所有视场的MTF值均大于0.45,全视场畸变量的绝对值小于0.7%,垂轴色差小于0.5个像元大小。     

Scintillation timing characteristics of (La,Gd)2Si2O7:Ce and Gd2SiO5:Ce single crystal scintillators: A comparative study

The scintillation timing characteristics of (La,Gd)₂Si₂O₇:Ce (GPSLa23.5%:Ce) single crystal were studied and compared with Gd₂SiO₅:Ce (GSO:Ce) single crystal. The photoelectron yield, scintillation decay times and coincidence time resolution were measured. At 511 keV γ-rays, the photoelectron yield of 10,770 ± 500 phe MeV⁻¹ and energy resolution of 5.4 ± 0.2% obtained for GPSLa23.5%:Ce are much better than those of 3350 ± 160 phe MeV⁻¹ and 7.8 ± 0.3% obtained for GSO:Ce. The scintillation decay time profile was measured by the time-correlated single photon counting technique using a fast-slow coincidence setup. In both materials the comparable rise times of several nanoseconds are present. The fast component decay time of 56 ns with relative intensity of 49% obtained for GPSLa23.5%:Ce is inferior to that of 32 ns(88%) obtained for GSO:Ce. Consequently, the coincidence time resolution of GPSLa23.5%:Ce is slightly worse than that of GSO:Ce. The normalized time resolution was also discussed in terms of a number of photoelectrons and decay time of the scintillation pulse.