Patent ID: 8071950

Claim:
A combined magnetic resonance and single photon nuclear imaging system, the system comprising: at least one compound semiconductor detector configured to directly convert incident gamma photons into electron-hole charge carriers; at least one collimator for single photon nuclear imaging an object under study with the at least one compound semiconductor detector; at least one magnet for producing a magnetic field suitable for magnetic resonance imaging, the at least one magnet having a central opening; at least one transceiver for magnetic resonance imaging the object under study with the at least one magnet; and a correction processor, wherein the at least one compound semiconductor detector is configured to single photon nuclear image the object under study under the magnetic field suitable for magnetic resonance imaging, wherein the at least one compound semiconductor detector is configured to single photon nuclear image the object under study at either end of the at least one magnet and outside the central opening of the at least one magnet such that the object under study is single photon nuclear imaged and magnet resonance imaged in a sequential manner, wherein the at least one compound semiconductor detector is adjacent and attached to the outside surface of the at least one magnet, wherein the correction processor is configured to compensate for an effect on the charge carriers traveling within the at least one compound semiconductor detector and under the magnetic field suitable for magnetic resonance imaging, wherein the at least one semiconductor detector comprises a first ring having a plurality of first modules and a second ring having a plurality of second modules, and wherein the first modules of the first ring are aligned to have an angular offset with the second modules of the second ring along an axial direction to view the object under study with twice the angular sampling with one axial motion.