Development of a portable instrument for automated measurements of the detective quantum efficiency of x-ray detectors

Abstract

The scientific community has generally adopted use of the modulation transfer function (MTF) and detective quantum efficiency (DQE) as primary measures of performance of radiographic detectors. However, measurement of these parameters is generally restricted to experts in laboratory environments due to the required x-ray physics knowledge, specialized instrumentation and computational analyses. We have developed a prototype instrument that automates both the physical measurement and subsequent image analysis to determine the MTF, noise power spectrum (NPS) and DQE of radiographic and mammographic systems. The instrument is placed in the x-ray path directly in front of the detector. A series of images are acquired, saved in "raw" DICOM format and then used to determine the MTF (using the slanted-edge method) and NPS. The number of incident quanta is calculated from measurements of the incident exposure including corrections for air temperature and pressure and ionization chamber spectral response. The primary sources of error are backscatter from the detector and scatter generated within the instrument. These have been minimized to achieve an incident exposure measurement within 2% of a calibrated electrometer and chamber in free space. The MTF and DQE of a commercial CsI-based flat-panel detector were measured over a range of incident exposures from 20 uR to 20 mR per image. Results agreed with both our own laboratory measurements and previously published measurements performed elsewhere with a similar detector within 2% for the MTF and 5% for the DQE. A complete DQE analysis of a clinical digital flat-panel detector is completed in 30 minutes and requires no system modifications.