Development of Multi-gap Resistive Plate Chamber (MRPC) for medical imaging

TL;DR

This paper presents the development and testing of multi-gap resistive plate chambers (MRPCs) as cost-effective, high-resolution detectors for medical imaging, specifically for improving Time of Flight PET systems.

Contribution

It introduces new MRPC prototypes with different materials and modes, demonstrating their potential as efficient detectors for medical imaging applications.

Findings

Cosmic ray tests show promising time resolution performance.

Bakelite-based MRPC operated in streamer mode.

Glass-based MRPC operated in avalanche mode.

Abstract

The low cost and high resolution Multi-gap Resistive Plate Chamber (MRPC) opens up a new possibility to find an efficient alternative detector for the Time of Flight (TOF) based Positron Emission Tomography, where the sensitivity of the system depends largely on the time resolution of the detector. In a layered structure, suitable converters can be used to increase the photon detection efficiency. In this paper results of the cosmic ray test of a four-gap bakelite-based prototype MRPC operated in streamer mode and six-gap glass-based MRPC operated in avalanche mode are discussed.