ABSTRACT
This chapter will provide the reader with a technical background on the principles of dual-energy CT as well as a comparison of the different implemented technologies available that enable dual energy-based spectral CT imaging. It will include an introduction to the theoretical background of spectral CT theory and will review different considerations related to the different technologies. These considerations include projection-based versus image-based decomposition or two-base material model selection, and their implications on spectral accuracy and the material separation capabilities of the selected technology. In addition, a review of the post-decomposition noise properties and the available de-noising schemes to suppress such noise will be discussed. Finally, the chapter will include a review of the different methods that are currently available to create the different spectral results from the two-base model data sets after the material decomposition step and will emphasize the physical meaning and the clinical benefits of each of the results.
