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Encyclopedia of Global Archaeology pp 4878–4884Cite as

Microcomputerized Tomography (MicroCT) in Archaeology

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Introduction

A growing number of museums and other institutions involved in archaeological and paleontological research are acquiring or developing 3D imaging systems based on X-ray microcomputerized tomography (microCT) (Fig. 1). This X-ray technique evolved from conventional clinical CT scanning, with more than two orders of magnitude increase in space resolution and a great enhancement in image contrast. The past 20 years have witnessed advances in X-ray microCT as a result of advances in X-ray sources (microfocus tubes and synchrotron radiation), 2D detectors (charged-coupled devices, flat-panel detectors, and silicon microstrip sensors), and front-end microelectronics for data acquisition. Advances in computer processing speed and storage memory capacity have also been crucial for the progress of microCT.

Microcomputerized Tomography (MicroCT) in Archaeology, Fig. 1
figure 1392

The microCT dedicated to cultural heritage and paleoanthropology at the “Abdus Salam” International Centre for...

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Microcomputerized Tomography (MicroCT) in Archaeology, Fig. 1
Microcomputerized Tomography (MicroCT) in Archaeology, Fig. 2
Microcomputerized Tomography (MicroCT) in Archaeology, Fig. 3
Microcomputerized Tomography (MicroCT) in Archaeology, Fig. 4

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Applied Physics, The ‘Abdus Salam’ International Centre for Theoretical Physics, Trieste, Italy

    Claudio Tuniz

  2. Elettra-Sincrotrone Trieste, Trieste, Italy

    Franco Zanini

Authors
  1. Claudio Tuniz
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  2. Franco Zanini
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Claudio Tuniz .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Archaeology, Flinders University, Adelaide, SA, Australia

    Claire Smith

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Tuniz, C., Zanini, F. (2014). Microcomputerized Tomography (MicroCT) in Archaeology. In: Smith, C. (eds) Encyclopedia of Global Archaeology. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-0465-2_675

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