Use of single photon counting detector arrays in combined PET/MR: Characterization of LYSO-SiPM detector modules and comparison with a LSO-APD detector

We propose in this study a novel PET detector concept as insert for simultaneous PET/MR imaging, using arrays of Silicon Photomultipliers (SiPMs) as photodetectors, read out by a data acquisition system based on sampling ADCs. A 2 x 2 LSO-SiPM detector array and four single channel LYSO-SiPM detectors have been evaluated and compared to a LSO-APD detector. A 17.9% energy resolution and a 1.4 ns time resolution have been measured. No degradation of these values could be detected when simultaneous MR acquisitions were performed. The nonlinear detector behaviour due to the limited dynamic range and recovery time effects has been studied. In addition, the contribution of dark counts and optical crosstalk for PET applications was also addressed. The feasibility for position localization of the incident light to a SiPM array using Anger logic has been investigated.