The investigation of neurophysiological mechanisms underlying the functional specificity of brain regions requires the development of technologies that are well adjusted to in vivo studies in small animals. An exciting challenge remains the combination of brain imaging and behavioural studies, which associates molecular processes of neuronal communications to their related actions. A pixelated intracerebral probe (PIXSIC) presents a novel strategy using a submillimetric probe for beta(+) radiotracer detection based on a pixelated silicon diode that can be stereotaxically implanted in the brain region of interest. This fully autonomous detection system permits time-resolved high sensitivity measurements of radiotracers with additional imaging features in freely moving rats. An application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) allows for parallel signal processing of each pixel and enables the wireless operation. All components of the detector were tested and characterized. The beta(+) sensitivity of the system was determined with the probe dipped into radiotracer solutions. Monte Carlo simulations served to validate the experimental values and assess the contribution of gamma noise. Preliminary implantation tests on anaesthetized rats proved PIXSIC's functionality in brain tissue. High spatial resolution allows for the visualization of radiotracer concentration in different brain regions with high temporal resolution.

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We investigate the improvement from the use of high-Z CdTe sensors for pre-clinical K-edge imaging with the hybrid pixel detectors XPAD3. We compare XPAD3 chips bump bonded to Si or CdTe sensors in identical experimental conditions. Image performance for narrow energy bin acquisitions and contrast-to-noise ratios of K-edge images are presented and compared. CdTe sensors achieve signal-to-noise ratios at least three times higher than Si sensors within narrow energy bins, thanks to their much higher detection efficiency. Nevertheless Si sensors provide better contrast-to-noise ratios in K-edge imaging when working at equivalent counting statistics, due to their better estimation of the attenuation coefficient of the contrast agent. Results are compared to simulated data in the case of the XPAD3/Si detector. Good agreement is observed when including charge sharing between pixels, which have a strong impact on contrast-to-noise ratios in K-edge images.

A: The XPAD3 chip bump-bonded to a Si sensor has been widely used in preclinical microcomputed tomography and in synchrotron experiments. Although the XPAD3 chip is linear up to 60 keV, the performance of the XPAD3/Si hybrid detector is limited to energies below 30 keV, for which detection efficiencies remain above 20%. To overcome this limitation on detection efficiency in order to access imaging at higher energies, we decided to develop a camera based on XPAD3 single chips bump-bonded to high-Z CdTe sensors. We will first present the construction of this new camera, from the first tests of the single chip hybrids to the actual mechanical assembly. Then, we will show first images and stability tests performed on the D2AM beam line at ESRF synchrotron facility with the fully assembled camera. K: Computerized Tomography (CT) and Computed Radiography (CR); Instrumentation for synchrotron radiation accelerators 1Corresponding author.