Validation of peneloPET positron range estimations

Abstract

Positron range depends on the materials in which positron propagates and on positron emitter isotope. As positron range limits the spatial resolution of PET images, good quantitative estimates of it should be included in any realistic simulation of PET acquisitions. In this work we compare positron range estimates obtained with PeneloPET to previous available simulations and experimental data. PeneloPET was used to simulate the positron range of 18F, 11C, 13N, 15O, 68Ga and 82Rb in the following tissues: cortical bone, soft bone, skin, muscle, brain, water, adipose tissue and lung. The 3D and 1D annihilation Point Spread Functions (aPSF) were calculated for each isotope-material combination. We have studied with more detail the 3D aPSF (radial distributions) and the cumulative fraction of annihilation events. These aPSF distributions were also studied for non-uniform media. Results obtained were consistent with other results previously reported in the literature as well as with experimentally measured data.