Scintillation camera with light pipe inserts for improved linearity

Claim 1

An improved scintillation camera comprising a single crystal scintillator, a glass cover on said scintillator, a plurality of photomultiplier tubes spaced from said scintillator with overlapping fields of view thereof, a light pipe mounted between said glass cover and said photomultiplier tubes for conducting light from said scintillator to said photomultiplier tubes, circuit means coupled to said photomultiplier tubes for producing coordinate electrical signals representing spatial coordinates of interaction of a gamma ray with said scintillator, and a plurality of elements mounted in said light pipe underneath the interiorally located ones of said photomultiplier tubes for altering the distribution of light from gamma ray interactions in said scintillator to said photomultiplier tubes in a manner such that said coordinate electrical signals more accurately represent said spatial coordinates, each of said elements comprising a regular geometric volume of transparent material having substantially the same index of refraction as said light pipe and having on at least a portion of the surface thereof a coating of transparent material having an index of refraction substantially lower than that of said light pipe whereby said coated surfaces partly or totally reflect or transmit light depending on the angle at which said light strikes said coated surfaces.