Contrast-enhanced refraction imaging

Abstract

An attempt has been made, for the first time, to extend the capabilities of diffraction enhanced imaging (DEI) using low concentrations of a contrast agent. A phantom has been constructed to accommodate a systematic series of diluted bromine deoxyuridase (BrDU) samples in liquid form. This was imaged using a conventional DEI arrangement and at a range of energies traversing the Br K-edge. The images were analsyed to provide a quantitative measure of contrast as a function of X-ray energy and (BrDU) concentration.The results indicate that the particular experimental arrangement was not optimized to exploit the potential of this contrast enhancement and several suggestions are discussed to improve this further.