Compton scattering profile for in vivo XRF techniques

The contribution from single Compton scattered photons to the background in in vivo x-ray fluorescence analysis is evaluated by taking into account the energy broadening of the scattered photons which reflects the momentum distribution of the target electrons. A general-purpose Monte Carlo evaluation of multiple scattering components, as well as accurate experimental verifications with 59.54 keV photons impinging on various targets of interest for real-life irradiation, confirm that the single Compton scattering profiles of the elements composing the biological matrix dominate the trend and amplitude of the background in the region of interest with near-backscatter configurations. Step features are likewise explained in terms of single Compton phenomenology. Other probable sources of background, such as photoelectron Bremsstrahlung and pile-up distribution, are studied both theoretically and experimentally in order to compare their amplitude and features with those of single Compton scattered photon profiles.