Speaker: Alejandro Ramirez (Houston University)
Applying Noble Liquid Particle Detection in Nuclear Imaging: Positron Emission Tomography
In the field of astroparticle physics, noble liquids such as Argon and Xenon are widely used in underground particle detectors searching for candidate dark matter particles. They offer a variety of advantages over solid, room temperature scintillators and therefore these liquid scintillators can be utilized in other fields of research such as medical imaging. Positron Emission Tomography (PET) is used to observe metabolic processes within patients. It works by reconstructing the annihilation origin of incident gamma rays produced by a positron emitting tracer. However, inefficiencies of current PET technology, such photomultiplier tubes, can result in poor imaging. We propose 3Dπ: a full body, Time of Flight (TOF) PET scanner using Silicon Photomultipliers (SiPM) coupled with a xenon-doped Liquid Argon (Lar+Xe) scintillator. We simulated this design using Geant4 while following the National Electrical Manufacturers Association's evaluation tests for performance assessment. We will present results that highlight a200-fold increase in sensitivity, spatial resolutions comparable to commercial PET scanners and produce PET images from 15-30 second scans faster than traditional 30-35-minute scans. Further studies will involve optimizing the layer thickness of Lar+Xe. With this scintillator and SiPMs, we can use the precise TOF info of gamma rays to improve the localization of individual positron annihilations and provide low-dose PET scans for patients who may be at high risk for exposure to radiation.