MCmatlab: an open-source, user-friendly, MATLAB-integrated three-dimensional Monte Carlo light transport solver with...

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Optics
• Computational Biology
• Thermal Medicine

Background:

• Existing Monte Carlo (MC) programs for radiative transfer equation (RTE) often require advanced programming knowledge.
• There is a need for accessible, open-source tools for simulating light propagation and thermal effects in biological tissues, especially in educational settings.

Purpose of the Study:

• Introduce MCmatlab, an open-source codebase designed for user-friendly simulation of radiative transfer and thermal damage in biological tissues.
• Provide a versatile tool for both students and researchers in computational bio-optics and thermal medicine.

Main Methods:

• Developed a fast 3D MC RTE solver and a finite-element heat diffusion/Arrhenius-based thermal damage simulator within MATLAB.
• Implemented the core solvers in parallelized C as MATLAB MEX functions for enhanced performance.
• Validated the RTE solver against established mcxyz code and demonstrated the thermal model with example results.

Main Results:

• MCmatlab successfully simulates light propagation using MC RTE.
• The integrated thermal model provides simulations of tissue damage based on heat diffusion and Arrhenius kinetics.
• The codebase combines the computational efficiency of C with the accessibility of MATLAB.

Conclusions:

• MCmatlab offers an easy-to-install and use solution for simulating tissue optics and thermal damage.
• The tool is suitable for educational purposes and advanced research, bridging the gap between complex simulations and user accessibility.
• Facilitates research in areas requiring accurate modeling of light-tissue interactions and their thermal consequences.