Abstract: Apparatus and methods for producing ultrashort optical pulses are described. A high-power, solid-state, passively mode-locked laser can be manufactured in a compact module that can be incorporated into a portable instrument. The mode-locked laser can produce sub-50-ps optical pulses at a repetition rates between 200 MHz and 50 MHz, rates suitable for massively parallel data-acquisition. The optical pulses can be used to generate a reference clock signal for synchronizing data-acquisition and signal-processing electronics of the portable instrument.

Abstract: A variable-resolution x-ray (VRX) scanner apparatus forms Computed Tomographic (CT) x-ray images of a subject. The detector array comprises a plurality of detector cells that detect the x-ray radiation at a spatial resolution that is dependent at least in part on cell-to-cell spacing in the array and the orientation of the array with respect to the X-axis and Z-axis. The detector array is operable to be tilted with respect to the Z-axis. The tilt angle of the array, which is preferably 45 degrees, defines an angular relationship between the Z-axis and a pivot axis of the array, where the pivot axis passes through the origin of the XYZ coordinate system. The detector array is operable to be pivoted about the pivot axis and positioned at a pivot angle with respect to the X-axis. The pivot angle defines an angular relationship between the detector array and the X-axis.

Abstract: Variable-Resolution X-ray (VRX) techniques boost spatial resolution of a Computed Tomographic (CT) scanner in the scan plane by two or more orders of magnitude by reducing the angle of incidence of the x-ray beam with respect to the detector surface. A multi-arm multi-angle VRX detector for targeted CT scanning allows for “target imaging” in which an area of interest is scanned at higher resolution than the remainder of the subject, yielding even higher resolution for the target area than that obtained from prior VRX techniques. In one embodiment, the VRX-CT detector comprises four quasi-identical arms, each containing six 24-cell modules made of individual custom CdWO4 scintillators optically-coupled to custom photodiode arrays. The maximum scan field is 40 cm for a magnification of 1.4. A significant advantage of the four-arm geometry is that it can transform quickly to a two-arm or single-arm geometry for comparison studies and other applications.

Abstract: Variable-Resolution X-ray (VRX) techniques boost spatial resolution of a Computed Tomographic (CT) scanner in the scan plane by two or more orders of magnitude by reducing the angle of incidence of the x-ray beam with respect to the detector surface. The invention provides a multi-arm multi-angle VRX detector for targeted CT scanning. The detector allows for “target imaging” in which an area of interest is scanned at higher resolution than the remainder of the subject, yielding even higher resolution for the target area than that obtained from prior VRX techniques. In one embodiment, the VRX-CT detector comprises four quasi-identical arms, each containing six 24-cell modules are made of individual custom CdWO4 scintillators optically-coupled to custom photodiode arrays. The maximum scan field is 40 cm for a magnification of 1.4. A significant advantage of the four-arm geometry is that it can transform quickly to a two-arm or single-arm geometry for comparison studies and other applications.