Simulation results of a small animal liquid xenon PET detector

Monte Carlo simulations of a novel concept PET detector for small animal imaging are presented. The scintillation medium of the detector is liquid xenon whose characteristics in terms of detection rival with the common scintillator crystals. Moreover, the axial geometry of the detector enables depth of interaction measurement. A detector module has been built and an experimental test bench has been developed. Simulations of the test bench enabled to determine the methods to use for analysing the experimental data. Moreover, they indicate the spatial resolution in the axial direction and the energy resolution which can be expected from the detector. The results show an axial resolution of 2.87plusmn0.12 mm and an energy resolution of 7.59plusmn0.34%.