Research progress of liquid xenon detection technology in medical imaging

Single photon emission computed tomography(SPECT) and positron emission tomography(PET) are important functional medical imaging technologies. Its function is to study the process of disease development and track radioactive labeled isotopes in organs, which can be used for early cancer screening, disease pathology research, and guidance for new drug development. Currently, most of the SPECT and PET systems used are crystal detectors with crystal scintillators as the medium. The detection technology based on liquid xenon is a new type of particle detection technology. Liquid xenon can generate both flash and ionization signals simultaneously. The performance of liquid xenon detection technology greatly exceeds that of traditional crystal detectors by combining optical signals and charge readout. We review the research progress of liquid xenon detection technology in medical imaging experiments in recent years.