Design studies of a depth encoding large aperture PET camera

The feasibility of a wholebody PET tomograph with the capacity to correct for the parallax error induced by the depth-of-interaction of /spl gamma/-rays is assessed through simulation. The experimental energy, depth, and transverse position resolutions of BGO block detector candidates are the main inputs to a simulation that predicts the point source resolution of the depth encoding large aperture camera (DELAC). The results indicate that a measured depth resolution of 7 mm (FWHM) is sufficient to correct a substantial part of the parallax error for a point source at the edge of the field-of-view. A search for the block specifications and camera ring radius that would optimize the spatial resolution and its uniformity across the field-of-view is also presented.>