Development of a Novel Depth-of-Interaction Encoding Method and Use of Light Spreading in a Scintillation Crystal Array with Single-Ended Readout

We designed a depth-of-interaction (DOI) positron emission tomography detector by applying a simple light-spreading method in a single-layer crystal array with a single-ended photosensor. By configuring different reflector patterns along the depth of the crystal, we were able to alter the light distribution of the gamma interaction at each depth. To evaluate the characteristics of the new DOI detector, we simulated the optical photon transport in the crystal array by using DETECT2000. Three different arrays comprising triangular-, square-, and hexagonal-shaped crystals were modeled. The 511-keV gamma-ray interactions were generated for all depths, and flood images were acquired. We confirmed that DOI layers could be distinguished in the obtained images and that the number of DOI layers depends on the number of sides of the polygonal crystals.