ABSTRACT
The wide band gap semiconductors Cadmium Telluride (CdTe) and Cadmium Zinc Telluride (CdZnTe) play increasingly important roles in room-temperature nuclear and x-ray detection, spectroscopy and imaging applications. Medical applications were both the drivers and primary beneficiaries of the development of this detector technology in the past 20 years. Nuclear imaging, including cardiac SPECT and MBI and low to moderate photon flux x-ray imaging, such as dual energy x-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) and panoramic dental imaging, were early adopters of these detectors. With the advancement of material and semiconductor device fabrication technology, coupled with progress in the design and realization of novel readout electronics, CdTe and CdZnTe detectors have been developed for other medical applications, such as miniature digestible imagers and high-flux multi-energy computed tomography. Here, we review progress in state-of-the-art of CdTe and CdZnTe materials and crystal growth technologies. We briefly discuss the emergence of predictive computational material science tools that may significantly advance material and device technologies and the opportunities that these advancements may provide for both mainstream and novel medical applications.
