Despite the critical importance of roots within soils for supporting plant growth, the assessment of root distribution in soils remains difficult and much is unknown regarding their behaviour. In this review, we examine X-ray computed tomography (CT) as a non-invasive method for examining root distribution in soils. X-ray CT enables three-dimensional reconstruction of soil cores to accurately estimate a wide range of features within the soil, including roots, not only examining changes spatially but also temporally. With the development of high-end X-ray CT systems and image processing algorithms, this approach can now be used to examine a range of factors, including root system architecture, soil-root interactions, soil pore architecture, soil biophysical interactions, and soil microorganism behaviour. In addition, we examine the use of synchrotron-based X-ray CT which has been used to provide better resolution, larger sample analysis, faster scanning, and images with greater contrast compared to conventional systems.

尽管土壤中的根对于支持植物生长至关重要，但对土壤中根分布的评估仍然很困难，而且关于它们的行为还有很多未知。在这篇综述中，我们研究了 X 射线计算机断层扫描 (CT) 作为一种检查土壤中根系分布的非侵入性方法。X 射线 CT 能够对土壤核心进行三维重建，以准确估计土壤内的各种特征，包括根部，不仅可以检查空间变化，还可以检查时间变化。随着高端 X 射线 CT 系统和图像处理算法的发展，这种方法现在可用于检查一系列因素，包括根系结构、土根相互作用、土壤孔隙结构、土壤生物物理相互作用和土壤微生物行为。此外，