B-scan based acoustic source reconstruction for magnetoacoustic tomography with magnetic induction (MAT-MI)

We present in this study, an acoustic source reconstruction method using focused transducer with B-mode imaging for magnetoacoustic tomography with magnetic induction (MAT-MI). MAT-MI is an imaging modality proposed for noninvasive conductivity imaging with high spatial resolution. In MAT-MI, acoustic sources are generated in a conductive object by placing it in a static and a time-varying magnetic field. The acoustic waves from these sources propagate in all directions and are collected with transducers placed around the object. The collected signal is then used to reconstruct the acoustic source distribution and to further estimate the electrical conductivity distribution of the object. A flat piston transducer acting as a point receiver has been used in earlier MAT-MI systems to collect acoustic signals. In this study, we propose to use B-mode scan scheme with a focused transducer that gives a signal gain in its focus region and improves the MAT-MI signal quality. A simulation protocol that can take into account different transducer designs and scan schemes for MAT-MI imaging is developed and used in our evaluation of different MAT-MI system designs. It is shown in our computer simulations that as compared to the earlier approach, the MAT-MI system using B-scan with a focused transducer allows MAT-MI imaging at a closer distance and has improved system sensitivity. In addition, the B-scan imaging technique allows reconstruction of the MAT-MI acoustic sources with a discrete number of scanning locations, which greatly increases the applicability of the MAT-MI approach, especially when a continuous acoustic window is not available in real clinical applications. We have also conducted phantom experiments to evaluate the proposed method, and the reconstructed image shows a good agreement with the target phantom.