X‐ray fluorescence computed tomography with absorption correction for biomedical samples

Abstract

To obtain accurate distributions of trace elements in biomedical samples nondestructively, the problems on absorption correction and radiation dose are confronted in X‐ray fluorescence computed tomography. In this paper, the absorption‐corrected ordered subsets expectation maximization (AC‐OSEM) algorithm is developed to solve these problems. Simulation results show that the AC‐OSEM‐based X‐ray fluorescence computed tomography is accurate when only the incident X‐ray attenuation map is known and relatively fewer projections are provided. In addition, for the biomedical samples, the simplified approximate expression of the fluorescence attenuation map is practicable. Experiments on the biomedical samples were also carried out to evaluate the applicability of the AC‐OSEM algorithm to soft tissues, which demonstrates that the distribution of the trace element Fe in the pathological liver could be clearly revealed. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.