We present a new decomposition approach for dual-energy computed tomography (DECT) called SIRZ that provides precise and accurate material description, independent of the scanner, over diagnostic energy ranges (30 to 200 keV). System independence is achieved by explicitly including a scanner-specific spectral description in the decomposition method, and a new X-ray-relevant feature space. The feature space consists of electron density, , and a new effective atomic number, , which is based on published X-ray cross sections. Reference materials are used in conjunction with the system spectral response so that additional beam-hardening correction is not necessary. The technique is tested against other methods on DECT data of known specimens scanned by diverse spectra and systems. Uncertainties in accuracy and precision are less than 3% and 2% respectively for the ( , ) results compared to prior methods that are inaccurate and imprecise (over 9%).
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.