High-resolution Compton cameras based on Si/CdTe double-sided strip detectors

We have developed a new Compton camera based on silicon (Si) and cadmium telluride (CdTe) semiconductor double-sided strip detectors (DSDs). The camera consists of a 500-mu m-thick Si-DSD and four layers of 750-mu m-thick CdTe-DSDs all of which have common electrode configuration segmented into 128 strips on each side with pitches of 250 mu m. In order to realize high angular resolution and to reduce size of the detector system, a stack of DSDs with short stack pitches of 4 mm is utilized to make the camera. Taking advantage of the excellent energy and position resolutions of the semiconductor devices, the camera achieves high angular resolutions of 4.5 degrees at 356 key and 3.5 degrees at 662 keV. To obtain such high resolutions together with an acceptable detection efficiency, we demonstrate data reduction methods including energy calibration using Compton scattering continuum and depth sensing in the CdTe-DSD. We also discuss imaging capability of the camera and show simultaneous multi-energy imaging. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.