Ionization produced by electron beams beneath curved surfaces.

Ionization produced by high-energy (6-18 MeV) electrons beneath cylindrical surfaces has been measured and compared to ionization at corresponding locations under a flat surface. Results are reported as ionization ratios over a range of depths, off-axis distances, radii of curvature, and electron energies. Phantoms with cylindrical entrance surfaces (radii 6-15 cm) were utilized to simulate patient contours. Measurements reveal that ionization ratios may depart from unity by as much as 50% and that a simple shifting of isodose curves may be insufficient to compensate for perturbation in electron dose distribution introduced by curved surfaces.

Problems with contrast-detail curves for CT performance evaluation.

Contrast-detail curves have been used frequently to describe the low contrast performance characteristics of computed tomography (CT) scanners. However, such curves can produce misleading conclusions if the effects of all variables influencing CT images are not considered. As shown in this experimental study, improperly designed contrast-detail curves disguise differences in CT performance when the same object is imaged with different x-ray spectra. These problems arise because contrast is defined as the difference in system-dependent CT numbers rather than the actual difference in the object. An alternate approach to CT performance evaluation using "difference-detail" curves is offered.

Multisegmented ion chamber for CT scanner dosimetry.

A multisegmented, ionization chamber capable of determining dosimetric profiles from a CT scanner has been developed and tested. The chamber consists of a number of 2 mm wide electrically isolated segments from which ionization currents may be measured. Presented here are the performance characteristics of the chamber including energy response, dose linearity, and corrections for "cross talk" between segments. Sample dosimetric profiles are depicted for 3 and 6 mm nominal beam widths at two locations in a dosimetric phantom positioned in the x-ray beam of a fourth generation CT scanner. The results agree well with the conventional method of obtaining dosimetry measurements with TLD chips.

Millimeter wavelength thermographic scanner.

Two new types of thermographic instruments sensitive to millimeter-wave electromagnetic radiation have been designed, constructed, and tested. These instruments utilize wavelengths that are three orders of magnitude longer and much more penetrating than those used in conventional infrared thermography. The instruments are capable of detecting apparent thermal variations as small as a fraction of a degree existing at tissue depths of several millimeters below the skin. By comparison, conventional IR thermographic units are limited to sampling radiation emitted only from the surface. The millimeter wave thermographic units are designed to contribute to the clinical detection of breast abnormalities with the specific aim of accurately and noninvasively detecting breast cancer.

Optimization of xeroradiographic exposures.

Xeroradiographs were exposed over a range of mAs and kVp in the mammographic energy range. At each kVp, the technique yielding the widest halo also produced the greatest detectability of small aluminum specks in mammographic phantoms. As the kVp increased, the maximum halo width and number of visible specks decreased. At all kVps, the techniques yielding the widest halo furnished almost constant energy deposition in the selenium plate. This constant plate dose was correlated to patient exposure at the entrance of the breast, and the relationships between patient entrance exposure, kVp, and minumum detectable speck size were determined.

Backscatter factors in the mammographic energy range.

Backscatter factors for kVps and half-value layers typical of mammographic beams have been determined as a function of beam diameter and half-value layer. The method utilized thin TLD-100 chips with the scattering medium alternately present and absent. Results indicate that the field-size dependence of the backscatter factor for lower half-value layers is less than that shown in the British Journal of Radiology Supplement 11.