In 1993 IEEE Nuclear Science Symposium and Medical Imaging Conference Record, pages 1869-1872, San Francisco, California, 4-6 November 1993.
We have previously used volumetric computed tomography for imaging bone specimens with approximately 50 micrometer resolution. Three dimensional measurement methods which can determine bone density to within one percent for detail as small as 5 micrometers would be useful for evaluating patterns of bone remodeling within trabelulae from biopsy specimens. Using theoretical modeling based on Monte Carlo photon/electron radiation transport calculations, we predict that this performance can be achieved using electron impact, microfocus x-ray tubes operating at 50 Watts with a total specimen scan time of 48 minutes for specimens having a 1.25mm dimension and for reconstruction arrays of 256 x 256 x 256.