Implementation of a fast method for high resolution phase contrast tomography

We report the implementation of a method which can yield the 3D distribution of the phase ( refractive index) of a weakly absorbing object from a single tomographic data set. In order to reduce the residual absorption artifact ( due to the fact that only one data set is used) the original algorithm presented by A. V. Bronnikov is amended by adding in the filter a factor found by using a semi empirical approach. The quality of the reconstruction is largely sufficient for optimal segmentation and further postprocessing even though the filter correction is based on assumption of constant absorption. This one step approach allows keeping radiation dose to the minimum. Spatial resolution is comparable to the conventional absorption based technique. The performance of the method is validated by using an established phase contrast technique. (c) 2006 Optical Society of America.