An Easily Assembled Laboratory Exercise in Computed Tomography
Published In
European Journal of Physics
Document Type
Citation
Publication Date
7-5-2011
Abstract
In this paper, we present a laboratory activity in computed tomography (CT) primarily composed of a photogate and a rotary motion sensor that can be assembled quickly and partially automates data collection and analysis. We use an enclosure made with a light filter that is largely opaque in the visible spectrum but mostly transparent to the near IR light of the photogate (880 nm) to scan objects hidden from the human eye. This experiment effectively conveys how an image is formed during a CT scan and highlights the important physical and imaging concepts behind CT such as electromagnetic radiation, the interaction of light and matter, artefacts and windowing. Like our setup, previous undergraduate level laboratory activities which teach the basics of CT have also utilized light sources rather than x-rays; however, they required a more extensive setup and used devices not always easily found in undergraduate laboratories. Our setup is easily implemented with equipment found in many teaching laboratories.
Locate the Document
DOI
10.1088/0143-0807/32/5/010
Persistent Identifier
http://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/18791
Citation Details
Mylott, E., Klepetka, R., Dunlap, J. C., & Widenhorn, R. (2011). An Easily Assembled Laboratory Exercise in Computed Tomography. European Journal of Physics, 32(5), 1227-1235.
Description
Copyright 2011 IOP Publishing Ltd.