The DRAGO gamma camera

In this work, we present the results of the experimental characterization of the DRAGO (DRift detector Array-based Gamma camera for Oncology), a detection system developed for high-spatial resolution gamma-ray imaging. This camera is based on a monolithic array of 77 silicon drift detectors (SDDs), with a total active area of 6.7 cm(2), coupled to a single 5-mm-thick CsI(Tl) scintillator crystal. The use of an array of SDDs provides a high quantum efficiency for the detection of the scintillation light together with a very low electronics noise. A very compact detection module based on the use of integrated readout circuits was developed. The performances achieved in gamma-ray imaging using this camera are reported here. When imaging a 0.2 mm collimated Co-57 source (122 keV) over different points of the active area, a spatial resolution ranging from 0.25 to 0.5 mm was measured. The depth-of-interaction capability of the detector, thanks to the use of a Maximum Likelihood reconstruction algorithm, was also investigated by imaging a collimated beam tilted to an angle of 45 degrees with respect to the scintillator surface. Finally, the imager was characterized with in vivo measurements on mice, in a real preclinical environment.