A high resolution PET scanner based on avalanche photodiode detectors for animal studies

The Sherbrooke animal positron tomograph is the first PET scanner based on avalanche photodiode detectors. It was designed to achieve high resolution in vivo imaging and accurate quantitation of regional radiopharmaceutical concentrations in small and medium-sized laboratory animals such as rats, cats, rabbits and small monkeys. This brief report describes the main design features of the new PET system and presents preliminary results of phantom studies which illustrate its potential for biomedical research applications.