Initial characterization of a position-sensitive photodiode/BGO detector for PET (positron emission tomography)

We present initial results of a position-sensitive photodiode/BGO detector for high resolution, multi-layer positron emission tomography (PET). Position sensitivity is achieved by dividing the 3 mm /times/ 20 mm rectangular photosensitive area along the diagonal to form two triangular segments. Each segment was individually connected to a low-noise amplifier. The photodiodes and crystals were cooled to /minus/100/degree/C to reduce dark current and increase the BGO signal. With an amplifier peaking time of 17 ..mu..sec, the sum of the signals (511 keV photopeak) was 3200 electrons with a full width at half maximum (fwhm) of 750 electrons. The ratio of one signal to the sum determined the depth of interaction with a resolution of 11 mm fwhm. 27 refs., 7 figs.