A Paul trap with sectored ring electrodes for experiments with two-dimensional ion crystals.

We have developed a trapped ion system for producing two-dimensional (2D) ion crystals for applications in scalable quantum computing, quantum simulations, and 2D crystal phase transition and defect studies. The trap is a modification of a Paul trap with its ring electrode flattened and split into eight identical sectors and its two endcap electrodes shaped as truncated hollow cones for laser and imaging optics access. All ten trap electrodes can be independently DC-biased to create various aspect ratio trap geometries.

Use of Cramer-Rao Lower Bound for Performance Evaluation of Different Monolithic Crystal PET Detector Designs.

We have previously reported on continuous miniature crystal element (cMiCE) PET detectors that provide depth of interaction (DOI) positioning capability. A key component of the design is the use of a statistics-based positioning (SBP) method for 3D event positioning. The Cramer-Rao lower bound (CRLB) expresses limits on the estimate variances for a set of deterministic parameters.

Resolution Properties of a Prototype Continuous Miniature Crystal Element (cMiCE) Scanner.

Continuous miniature crystal element (cMiCE) detectors are a potentially lower cost alternative for high resolution discrete crystal PET detector designs. We report on performance characteristics of a prototype PET scanner consisting of two cMiCE detector modules. Each cMiCE detector is comprised of a 50 × 50 × 8 mm LYSO crystal coupled to a 64 channel multi-anode PMT.

Study of PET Detector Performance with Varying SiPM Parameters and Readout Schemes.

The spatial resolution performance characteristics of a monolithic crystal PET detector utilizing a sensor on the entrance surface (SES) design is reported. To facilitate this design, we propose to utilize a 2D silicon photomultiplier (SiPM) array device. Using a multi-step simulation process, we investigated the performance of a monolithic crystal PET detector with different data readout schemes and different SiPM parameters.

Impact on the Spatial Resolution Performance of a Monolithic Crystal PET Detector Due to Different Sensor Parameters.

The performance characteristics of a monolithic crystal PET detector utilizing a novel sensor on the entrance surface (SES) design is reported. To facilitate this design, we propose to utilize a 2D silicon photomultiplier (SiPM) array device. SiPMs are a form of Geiger-Muller mode avalanche photodiodes (GMAPD) that can provide signal gain similar to a photomultiplier tube (PMT).