Computed microtomography (μCT) with unmonochromatized synchrotron X-rays for cancerous human breast tissue and mouse vertebra

The use of X-ray computed microtomography (μCT) has increased in biomedical research and industrial applications. The inherited high quality of synchrotron radiation (SR) X-rays such as high flux, collimation, and coherence have been used recently to produce radiographic images with high lateral resolution and contrast. A simple and stable imaging system using unmonochromatized SR source based on the principle of phase contrast X-ray imaging consists of a CCD detector coupled with optical lens system at the Pohang Light Source (PLS) 5C1 beamline. The spatial resolution of the imaging system was determined using the modulation transfer function (MTF), which was measured by sequential calculations obtained from sharp edge images. Projection image data were obtained at 250 steps over 180 degrees of rotation with an acquisition time of 30 to 150 msec per projection image, depending on the imaged object materials, and tomographic images were reconstructed using a simple filtered backprojection algorithm.