Performance Evaluation of a Mobile Digital Tomosynthesis System Using a Moving CNT-Based Tube Array for Extremity Scans

Digital tomosynthesis (DTS) can enhance diagnostic accuracy by providing 3-D volume images with a remarkably low-X-ray dose. The aim of this study is to provide an initial assessment of the image quality and the X-ray dose for a mobile DTS system employing a moving carbon-nanotube (CNT)-based digital X-ray source array and a fixed detector for extremity scans. This design allows to reduce the source-to-detector distance (SDD) to only 400 mm, thereby enabling a compact and highly mobile system. We first measured the entrance surface dose (ESD), which is the sum of the X-ray dose irradiated from individual projections using a dosimeter placed at the center of the X-ray detector. The ESDs obtained for hand, foot, and knee scan configurations were 0.15, 0.22, and 0.43 mGy, respectively, which were comparable to those obtained from 2-D radiography exposures. For the evaluation of its reconstructed image quality, the in-plane modulation transfer function (MTF), Z -resolution, geometry distortion, and image homogeneity were assessed by utilizing a wire-phantom, sphere-phantom, and PMMA phantoms. The reconstructed images of hand, ankle and knee phantoms were evaluated qualitatively. The results of the evaluation demonstrate the successful development of the mobile DTS system proposed in this article.