Slotted surface treatment on position-sensitive NaI(Tl) detectors to improve spatial resolution

By cutting slots in the entrance surface of a thick NaI(Tl) crystal we have narrowed the light response function. As the slot depth increases the light response function gets narrower while the local cluster energy increases. This leads to an overall improvement in the detector spatial resolution along x and y, while its sensitivity is increased by using a thick crystal. In addition, a narrow light response function could also improve the detector count rate capability by reducing the detector dead area due to a single event. 2D slots will be investigated next, both through simulations and experimental measurements