X-ray source and detector configuration for a non-translational x-ray diffraction system

A method for detecting contraband, said method comprising:

• positioning an object within a field of view of an x-ray diffraction (XRD) system;
• generating primary x-rays from a stationary x-ray source of the XRD system to scan the object, the stationary x-ray source including a plurality of x-ray focal spot locations in a linear arrangement;
• collimating coherently scattered x-rays produced by an interaction of the primary x-rays with the object at a constant scatter angle using a secondary collimator;
• receiving the collimated coherently scattered x-rays with a stationary detector to generate XRD data;
• and
• determining a probability of the contraband being present in the object by analyzing the XRD data.

A contraband detection system comprising a non-translational x-ray diffraction (XRD) system, the non-translational XRD system comprising:

• a gantry having an opening to receive an object to be scanned, the object traversing through the gantry along an axis of translation;
• a stationary distributed x-ray source affixed to a first side of the gantry and comprising a plurality of x-ray focal spot locations in a linear arrangement, the plurality of x-ray focal spot locations configured to project x-rays toward the object;
• a stationary detector affixed to a second side of the gantry generally opposite the stationary distributed x-ray source and configured to measure a coherent scatter spectra of the x-rays after passing through the object, the stationary detector comprising at least one detector in a linear arrangement substantially similar to the linear arrangement of the plurality of x-ray focal spot locations;
• and
• a data acquisition system (DAS) connected to the stationary detector and configured to measure the coherent scatter spectra, the coherent scatter spectra utilized to determine a material composition of at least a portion of the object.