Design and implementation of a fan beam coded aperture x-ray diffraction tomography system for checkpoint baggage scanning

X-ray diffraction tomography (XRDT) enables material identification throughout a volumetric object. We perform a simulation-based study to analyze how the image quality of a fan beam coded aperture XRDT system depends on the specifications of the detector used to measure the scatter signal. Going beyond simulation, we design and implement an XRDT prototype scanner that operates in near real-time to perform slice-by-slice imaging of a target object. The scanner is consistent with the requirements of airport checkpoint lanes and can run inline with existing transmission-based X-ray scanners.