PSPMT and PIN Diode Designs of a Small Scintillation Camera for Imaging Malignant Breast Tumors

We are investigating the concept of utilizing a small gamma ray scintillation camera to help identify and localize malignant breast tumors after a suspicious finding in a mammogram. We are exploring two different photodetector technologies for a small prototype camera development. The first uses a position sensitive photomultiplier (PSPMT) as the photodetector, the second, an array of silicon PIN diodes (PD). In this report, we present imaging results obtained with a NaI(T1)-PSPMT design, and the design features, expected performance and relevant energy measurements obtained for the CsI(m)-PD based device.