High resolution collimator system for X-ray detector

Claim 1

A high resolution collimator/detector for a computerized tomography system having a source of X-ray beams to irradiate an object, comprising: an X-ray detector including an array of wide detector elements comprised of a printed circuit detector board having a collector plate divided into wide strips and a parallel voltage plate between which is impressed an electric field; a housing having an X-ray transparent section and a chamber containing said detector board and voltage plate and a high pressure gaseous medium to convert incident X-rays into charged particles that drift under the influence of said electric field; a collimator secured to said detector housing comprised of a central layer in which narrow tapered slits are cut and continuous enclosing side layers, said central layer having at the top flexure pieces each pressed toward an edge of the respective slit to yield a controlled slit width at the top of 3 mils or less to limit and define the width of X-ray beams incident on said detector elements and hence the system resolution; every narrow tapered slit being approximately centered on one wide detector element which collects all the charged particles formed in that element, and having a length equal to the thickness of said central layer which determines the slice thickness of said computerized tomography system.