A new phenomenon in medical imaging: effects of radiation coherence on spatial resolution

摘要

It is shown that the state of phase coherence of nuclear radiation emission is an important new consideration in the definition, measurement, and determination of the spatial resolution of medical images. It is also relevant in the design, analysis, and performance prediction and evaluation of medical imagers. Phantom studies are presented to demonstrate that the state of coherence of the radiation may vary from complete coherence to partial coherence to total incoherence as deeper tissue/organ structures are imaged. Substantiation and corroboration of our theoretical and experimental conclusions are found in classical optical diffraction and imaging, and in nuclear diffractive processes.