Low Dose Single Step Grating Based X-Ray Phase Contrast Imaging

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This patent introduces an innovative method and system for X-ray phase contrast imaging using gratings, which allows for high-contrast, quantitative X-ray images to be captured with a significantly lower radiation dose compared to traditional methods. Unlike the established phase-stepping approach, this invention extracts phase information in a single measurement step (the 'reverse projection' method), bypassing the need for multiple exposures and mechanical adjustments. This advancement not only reduces the dose imparted to specimens but also speeds up data acquisition while maintaining or improving image quality.

Use CasesContent extracted from patent full text and abstract with AI.

• Biomedical imaging of small animals or biological specimens where minimizing radiation dose is critical (e.g., in-vivo imaging).
• Preclinical research needing detailed visualization of soft tissues at micro-scale resolution.
• Medical imaging applications, such as improved soft tissue contrast in CT scanners for human diagnostics, especially where detecting subtle tissue differences is important.
• Non-destructive testing and quality control in materials science and industrial inspection.
• Imaging delicate samples in fields such as paleontology, botany, or microelectronics without causing radiation damage.
• Expanding phase contrast imaging to laboratory X-ray sources and potentially to other wavelengths (such as neutrons or visible light microscopy).

BenefitsContent extracted from patent full text and abstract with AI.

• Significant reduction in radiation dose to specimens or patients, making the technique safer for biological and medical applications.
• Faster data acquisition because the technique does not require phase stepping or multiple exposures, increasing throughput and enabling time-sensitive studies.
• High image quality and sensitivity, with contrast of both soft and hard tissues being enhanced compared to conventional absorption-based X-ray imaging.
• Reduced sensitivity to mechanical instabilities because only a single step is required, simplifying the imaging setup and reducing artifacts.
• Potential compatibility with both synchrotron radiation and standard laboratory X-ray tube sources.
• The method can potentially be extended to 3D quantitative imaging of X-ray scattering, offering new structural insights at microscopic scales.

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Patent Abstract

Phase sensitive X-ray imaging methods can provide substantially increased contrast over conventional absorption based imaging, and therefore new and otherwise inaccessible information. The use of gratings as optical elements in hard X-ray phase imaging overcomes some of the problems that have impaired the wider use of phase contrast in X-ray radiography and tomography. So far, to separate the phase information from other contributions detected with a grating interferometer, a phase-stepping approach has been considered, which implies the acquisition of multiple radiographic projections. Here, an innovative, highly sensitive X-ray tomographic phase contrast imaging approach is presented based on grating interferometry, which extracts the phase contrast signal without the need of phase stepping. Compared to the existing phase step approach, the main advantage of this new method dubbed "reverse projection" is the significantly reduced delivered dose, without degradation of the image quality. The new technique sets the pre-requisites for future fast and low dose phase contrast imaging methods, fundamental for imaging biological specimens and in-vivo studies.