Maximum likelihood activity and attenuation estimation using both emission and transmission data with application to utilization of Lu‐176 background radiation in TOF PET

Purpose We present a new method for joint reconstruction of activity and attenuation images using both emission and transmission data and demonstrate its advantage over the standard maximum likelihood activity and attenuation (MLAA) reconstruction using emission data alone. Methods We define a joint likelihood function including both time‐of‐flight (TOF) emission data and transmission data. The latter can be obtained from an external source or...