Mask transparency in coded aperture imaging

Paul M.E. Shutler

doi:10.1016/j.nima.2026.171500

Mask transparency in coded aperture imaging

2026-03-01

0

PRE

AI

DOI：10.1016/j.nima.2026.171500

Original

Original request for help

Save

Abstract

En 中文

Despite their many advantages, the very low open fractions of Singer product apertures make them more vulnerable to mask transparency than traditional designs such as modified uniformly redundant arrays and no two holes touching arrays. We investigate this issue by deriving theoretical formulae for the signal-to-noise ratio of all three families of aperture in the presence of mask transparency, then verifying the accuracy of these formulae against numerical simulations for a range of different aperture sizes and thicknesses, and for realistic objects and energies in the context of nuclear medical imaging. We find that by stepping the Singer product apertures, that is, increasing the thickness of the mask substrate in a stepwise fashion and in proportion to distance from the holes, this vulnerability can essentially be eliminated, and that for objects above a certain size, such stepped Singer product apertures achieve a signal-to-noise ratio exceeding that of stepped versions of the other two families across all energies.

Keywords:

Coded aperture imaging

Singer product aperture

Mask transparency

Mask transparency in coded aperture imaging

Abstract

Journal

Organization

Cited Papers