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Coherent x-ray scatter is material specific, and imaging systems utilizing information from coherently scattered x rays are promising for security and medical applications requiring material identification with high sensitivity. A persistent challenge for practical implementation of these systems has been slow image acquisition. Our approach to reducing acquisition time is to develop a multibeam projection imaging system rather than a volumetric (CT or otherwise) imaging system. Previously we implemented a synchrotron-based system with five coplanar pencil beams and continuous motion of the object. Now we present a tabletop x-ray scatter imaging system built using a rotating-anode x-ray tube and a scintillating, energy-integrating flat-panel detector. A conventional source is more challenging to use than a synchrotron beam due to polychromaticity, low intensity, beam divergence, and x-ray tube thermal considerations. Simulations were performed to determine the system layout that optimized the intensity and angular resolution of scatter signals. The tube is inclined 6.1° to reduce apparent focal spot size. The primary collimation allows for an array of up to three rows by five columns of pencil beams, 3mm diameter and 2 cm apart at the object midplane 35 cm from the source, to irradiate the object simultaneously. There is no scatter collimation and the multiplexed scatter signals are disentangled using a maximum-likelihood expectation maximization algorithm. Motorized translation stages scan the object through the beams. The system can image objects up to 10 × 10 × 10 cm3 and 1 kg. Post-object primary beam attenuators allow for the same detector to measure transmitted and scattered x rays simultaneously. Initial images acquired with the system are presented. Using 15 beams, a 6000-pixel scatter image of a 6 cm × 10 cm region was acquired in 4.6 min.
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