Metasurface-Enhanced Antennas for Microwave Brain Imaging

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Electromagnetics
• Medical Imaging

Background:

• Stroke is a leading cause of death and disability, necessitating early and accurate diagnosis.
• Microwave imaging (MWI) offers a non-invasive, non-ionizing approach for brain stroke detection.
• Enhancing MWI systems is crucial for improving diagnostic capabilities and patient outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the feasibility of using metasurface (MTS) loaded antennas to enhance MWI for stroke detection.
• To evaluate the performance improvement of MWI systems with MTS-enhanced antennas.
• To compare different MWI system configurations using MTS technology.

Main Methods:

• Experimental measurements using MTS-enhanced antennas in a brain-mimicking gel phantom for haemorrhagic and ischaemic stroke targets.
• Analysis of transmission/reflection parameters and reconstructed images from MWI prototypes.
• Simulation studies comparing a standard MWI system with MTS-enhanced antenna systems operating in air.

Main Results:

• MTS loading significantly improved signal transmission (several dB) and image quality in experimental setups.
• MTS superstrate enhanced antenna return loss by approximately 5 dB and increased signal difference by up to 25 dB in simulations.
• MTS-enhanced MWI systems demonstrated more accurate reconstructions compared to conventional systems.

Conclusions:

• Metasurface structures represent a significant hardware advancement for MWI scanners.
• MTS technology can lead to more functional and ergonomic MWI systems for stroke detection.
• This approach holds promise for improving early diagnosis and management of brain strokes.