Imaging Physics

Imaging Physics

Headed by Chun Yuan, PhD, and Vasily Yarnykh, PhD, the Imaging Physics group develops novel high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging protocols and technology to accurately identify and characterize the underlying features of vessel clots that cause ischemic stroke and heart disease.

Recent Developments

• Quadruple Inversion-recovery (QIR)

Yarnykh VL, Yuan C. T1-Insensitive flow suppression using quadruple inversion-recovery. Magn Reson Med 2002; 48: 899-905

A novel blood suppression method, which is highly insensitive to a T1 of blood and is intended specifically for black-blood contrast-enhanced cardiovascular imaging.

Figure 2.

• Multi-slice Double Inversion-Recovery (DIR)

Yarnykh VL, Yuan C. Multislice double inversion-recovery black-blood imaging with simultaneous slice reinversion. J Magn Reson Imaging 2003; 17: 478-483

A time-efficient modification of the DIR blood suppression method can result in an up to eight-fold decrease in scan time.

Figure 3.

• Cross-relaxation imaging

Yarnykh VL, Yuan C. Cross-relaxation Imaging Reveals Detailed Anatomy of White Matter Fiber Tracts in the Human Brain. NeuroImage 2004; 23:409-424

A new parametric imaging modality that visualizes fiber tracts and quantitatively characterizes brain tissue offers promising new applications for neurological research which will focus on pathologies resulting in focal and systemic brain damage, such as multiple sclerosis, stroke, and other neurodegenerative, inflammatory, and autoimmune disorders.