Linearity is a property of a system, characterized by output that is directly proportional to the input.
In computed tomography (CT), linearity describes the amount to which the CT number of a material is exactly proportional to the density of this material (in Hounsfield units). This accuracy between the linear attenuation coefficient and the CT number is also utilized to describe the performance of a CT scanner.
The linearity of a gamma camera is a measure of the geometrical correctness of the images.

A phantom is an artificial object of known size and composition that is imaged to test, adjust or monitor the linearity, sensitivity, homogeneity, imaging performance and geometric aspects of CT scanners, gamma cameras or other radiographic systems. A phantom can be a fluid-filled container or bottle including structures of various materials, sizes and shapes.

See also Daily Quality Assurance and Acceptance Checking.

(PSF) The point spread function describes the response of an imaging system to a point or impulse input. A hypothetical point object will generally have an extended (blurred) image resulting from the imaging process; this is the point spread function characterizing the imaging process. Considering any object as composed of an assembly of point objects, knowledge of the PSF permits the prediction of how the object will be imaged, assuming linearity of the imaging process.

See also Resolution, Phantom and Daily Quality Assurance.