The use of the Micromegas technology for a new imaging system

The Micromegas (Micromesh Gaseous) detector technology was developed by I. Giomataris and G. Charpak, in the mid 90s, for applications in the field of experimental Particle Physics. The most recent development is a novel Micromegas detector designed to detect photons of energies 1–10 keV (X-ray range), for a discovery experiment of the hypothetical particles called axions, installed and currently taking data at CERN (the European Laboratory for Particle Research in Geneva). This detector has an X–Y readout capability of resolution less than 100 μm, an energy resolution down to 14%, for this energy range, and an overall efficiency of 70%. With planned modifications, similar performances can be achieved for operation in the energy regime of the technetium gammas. This could lead to a novel γ-ray imaging device with spatial resolution in the submillimeter range. Initial results are presented obtained using the current detector with a parallel hole collimator to image thin capillary phantoms filled with a 99mTc water solution.