Demonstration of phase-assisted material decomposition with a Talbot-Lau interferometer using a single x-ray tube potential

We present a proof-of-principle demonstration of material decomposition using a single X-ray tube potential (38 kVp + 0.2 mm Sn, for an effective energy around 27 keV) with a Talbot-Lau grating-based phase-contrast computed tomography (CT) system. We show good material separation of water and fat and an accurate quantitative measurement of isopropyl alcohol. This method utilizes the distinctiveness of both components of the refractive index, δ and β, and is promising for separating soft tissue materials that have similar attenuation values such as water and fat.