Detective quantum efficiency of a silicon microstrip photon-counting detector having edge-on geometry under mammography imaging condition

Abstract

We have investigated the image quality of a silicon microstrip detector system operated in single-photon counting mode under mammography imaging condition. The detector has an edge-on geometry with a tilting angle of 5 degrees to the normal direction of X-ray incidence. It is composed of four modules and each module employs 256 silicon microstrips. Using a slanted-edge knife technique, the modulation-transfer function (MTF) without aliasing was determined. Noise-power spectrum (NPS) was determined using two-dimensional (2D) Fourier analysis on the line-scanned 2D images. Based on the measured MTF and NPS results, detective quantum efficiency (DQE) was calculated. These systematic procedures were repeated at various energy thresholds. Asymmetric MTF properties between two perpendicular directions were observed because of the scan motion. Spectral densities in NPS were white for spatial frequencies. The best DQE value around zero-spatial frequency was about 0.7. It was observed that the DQE was independent of the level of X-ray exposure, which is desirable for low-dose mammography. © 2011 IOP Publishing Ltd and SISSA.