Scint-x Ab

Vivamos Limited

Olof Svenonius

Anna Sahlholm

Peter Norlin

Daniel Nilsson

David Rihtnesberg

There is provided a method and system for filling micromechanical structures with x-ray absorbing material. The method includes providing a wetting layer for enabling melted x-ray absorbing material to flow over the surface of an overall structure including the micromechanical structures, melting the x-ray absorbing material, and applying gas pressure to press the melted x-ray absorbing material into the micromechanical structures.

Filling micromechanical structures with x-ray absorbing material

Disclosed is a method for melting and solidification of a scintillating material in micromechanical structures, including controlling the melting and solidification of the scintillating material by individually controlled heat sources, a top heater and a bottom heater, placed above and below a process chamber, housing a sample with the micromechanical structures and the scintillating material. The heaters are controlled to set a vertical temperature gradient over the sample to control the melting and solidification of the scintillating material. During melting, the top heater is ramped up and stabilized at a temperature where no melting occurs and the bottom heater is ramped up and stabilized at a temperature where melting occurs during a period of time while the scintillating material melts and flows into the micromechanical structures. During solidification, the temperature of the bottom heater decreases to enable solidification to take place starting from the bottom of the micromechanical structures.

Method for melting and solidification of scintillating material in micromechanical structures

Disclosed is a method for manufacturing a scintillator according to the proposed technology. The method includes providing a basic scintillator structure having micromechanical features, the basic scintillator structure having a front and a back. The method also includes applying a reflector on the front of the basic scintillator structure, and opening the back of the basic scintillator structure to create a scintillator having open ended micromechanical features.

Scintillator, scintillator assembly, x-ray detector and x-ray imaging system and a method for manufacturing a scintillator

There is provided an x-ray scintillator () including a pore matrix having a plurality of pores formed in a substrate (). Each of the pores is at least partially covered with a multi-layered coating including at least a reflective layer () and a protective layer (). The at least partially coated pores are filled with scintillating material () for absorbing x-ray photons to produce secondary photons, preferably with a wavelength in the visible range. The reflective layer () of the multi-layered coating is arranged between the scintillating material () and the substrate () for reflecting the secondary photons, and the protective layer () of the multi-layered coating is arranged between the reflective layer () and the scintillating material () for protecting the reflective layer while allowing reflection of the secondary photons by the reflective layer.

X-ray scintillator containing a multi-layered coating

There is provided a pixel () for an image sensor, wherein the pixel () is based on a doped substrate () on which a lightly doped epitaxial layer () is provided. A photosensitive structure () and an isolating reversely biased well () are defined in the epitaxial layer, and the photosensitive structure () is encapsulated in the reversely biased well (). Alternatively, or as a complement, the pixel () includes isolating wells extending on respective sides of the photosensitive structure () throughout the entire or at least a major part of the epitaxial layer to provide isolation from neighboring pixels of the image sensor.

Pixel structures for optimized x-ray noise performance

There is provided a method and corresponding device for noise generated by absorption of x-ray photons in an image sensor having a number of pixels. The method is based on identifying (S) so-called hot pixels affected by absorption of x-rays, and calculating (S), for each hot pixel, directional gradients in a number of different directions in a pixel neighborhood of the hot pixel. The method further involves selecting (S), for each hot pixel, at least one direction among those directions having lowest gradient, and determining (S), for each hot pixel, a replacement value based on neighborhood pixel values in the selected direction(s). For each hot pixel, the value of the hot pixel is then replaced (S) with the determined replacement value. In this way, noise generated by the absorption of x-ray photons in the image sensor may be reduced, while substantially maintaining the resolution (sharpness) in the image.

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Stockholm, Sweden

Olof Svenonius