Past Event: Oden Institute Seminar

Powering Next-Generation MRI with Physics, Information Processing, and Computation: An Integrated Encoding and Decoding Approach (in EER 3.646)

Bo Zhao, Postdoctoral Fellow, Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Harvard Medical School

Abstract

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a powerful and versatile imaging technology, which has provided unprecedented capabilities to probe the structural, functional, and metabolic information of living systems. Since its inception, the MR imaging process has been formulated as a “communication” problem – i.e., it involves both encoding and decoding. The encoding process maps an underlying image function that depends on physical, physiological, and experimental parameters into sensory data utilizing spin physics; and the decoding process reconstructs this desired image function from the measured data. This long-standing encoding/decoding model often results in poor trade-offs between image resolution, signal-to-noise ratio, and data acquisition speed, which limits the practical utility of high-dimensional MRI. In this talk, I will present a novel imaging framework to tackle these challenges, by using an integrated encoding and decoding paradigm. The proposed framework leverages advanced mathematical models and algorithms to tightly integrate the encoding and decoding processes. It exploits the synergistic interactions between spin physics, statistical inference, and machine learning to help overcome major technical barriers of the existing MRI technologies. I will illustrate the power of this framework using two concrete approaches, i.e., subspace imaging and statistical imaging, and will highlight their impacts on applications in cardiovascular imaging and quantitative neuroimaging. Finally, I will discuss some exciting new opportunities with this framework that leverage the rapid development of advanced computing and machine learning technologies. Bio: Bo Zhao is a postdoctoral fellow at the Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging of Harvard Medical School. Dr. Zhao received his Ph.D. in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. His research lies in the general area of computational imaging and medical imaging, with emphasis on the modality of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). He has focused on developing advanced mathematical models, computational algorithms, and data acquisition schemes to push the limits of MR imaging systems. His research has been recognized by several prestigious awards, including an NIH Pathway to Independence Award (K99/R00) and an NIH Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award Postdoctoral Fellowship. Dr. Zhao is an Associate Member of the Bioimaging and Signal Processing Technical Committee in the IEEE Signal Processing Society.