The results of an experiment arc presented which verify previous calculations that indicate protons can be used to obtain computed tomographic (CT) reconstructions with a considerably lower dose than that required by x rays for reconstructions of the same quality. Furthermore, the use of protons virtually eliminates the beam hardening artifacts encountered in x-ray CT scanners. A CT density reconstruction of a 30-cm-diameter phantom obtained with 240 MeV protons at LAMPF is compared with a reconstruction of the same phantom obtained with a commercial x-ray scanner, the advantages and disadvantages of this application of protons are discussed.
Keywords: proton computed tomography, proton radiography, low-dose scanning, proton energy loss, straggling, phantom
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