Initial investigation of mesh-based x-ray phase tomography

Abstract

X-ray phase and dark field imaging offer two additional channels of information to enhance image contrast as well as providing information on material micro-texture that is unavailable to conventional x-ray imaging. These signals are commonly acquired by using multiple precisely aligned, fine-pitched gratings to both pattern the beam and to detect subtle shifts and blurring in this pattern. We instead use a single, low-cost, easily-aligned, coarse-pitched mesh to produce a pattern that is imaged directly to produce phase and dark field computed tomography (CT) images. We demonstrate phase and CT reconstructions using our system for a variety of phantoms.