Algorithms and Systems for Electromagnetic and Ultrasound Inverse Problems

这项NSERC发现补助金提案旨在推进构成定量电磁波成像（EWI）和超声成像（USI）基础的核心科学知识和实用技术。两者都是波场成像技术，可以创建无法访问的对象或感兴趣区域的特定属性的定量图像。当利用电磁波时，例如，当使用超声波时，对诸如压缩性、衰减因子和质量密度的超声特性进行成像。这些属性图像可用于各种诊断应用。在我的指导下，美国的电磁成像实验室。马尼托巴的EWI和USI算法做出了重大贡献，我们已经建立了适用于各种生物医学和工业应用的成像系统。生物医学的主要重点是建立检测乳腺癌以及经常监测乳腺癌治疗的系统和技术。这些相同的技术也已被纳入用于监测谷物质量的储存谷物成像系统，以便提供对腐败的早期检测。我们已经提出的定量波场成像技术，解决非线性逆散射问题的基础上，可以利用在成像应用中，其中波型能量可以被引入作为一个询问场和散射场以外的区域可以被准确地测量。我们的系统设计研究使这种询问/测量过程的实际表现成为可能，我们的软件开发结合了成像算法，使我们能够生成属性图像。 科学和技术挑战限制了使用波场成像获得的图像的准确性和分辨率。这些挑战限制了EWI在乳腺成像中的应用，但有理由相信研究将带来改进。准确性，而不是分辨率，是更重要的颗粒成像，没有竞争的技术，产生的财产图像存在。该研究计划的总体长期重点是改进和调整EWI和USI算法、技术和系统，使这些模式成为乳腺成像应用和颗粒成像应用的商业可行模式。主要的方法论主题是同时开发算法的进步，同时开发，整合和利用系统设计功能，帮助成像过程。这项研究的成功将开辟新的生物医学和新的工业应用（例如，非破坏性评估）。共有7名研究生将参与这项研究。

This NSERC Discovery Grant proposal aims to advance the core scientific knowledge and practical technologies that form the foundation of quantitative electromagnetic wave imaging (EWI) and ultrasound imaging (USI). Both are wavefield imaging techniques that create quantitative images of particular properties of an inaccessible object or region of interest. Properties such as the permittivity and conductivity of a region are imaged when one utilizes electromagnetic waves, e.g., microwaves, whereas ultrasonic properties, such as the compressibility, attenuation factor, and mass density, are imaged when using ultrasound waves. These property images can be utilized in a wide variety of diagnostic applications. Under my direction, the Electromagnetic Imaging Laboratory at the U. of Manitoba has made significant contributions to particular EWI and USI algorithms and we've built imaging systems applicable to various biomedical and industrial applications. The primary biomedical focus has been on building systems and technologies for the detection of breast cancer as well as for the frequent monitoring of breast cancer treatment. These same techniques have also been incorporated into stored-grain imaging systems that are used for the monitoring of grain quality so as to provide the early detection of spoilage. The quantitative wavefield imaging techniques we've advanced, based on solving the nonlinear inverse scattering problem, can be utilized in imaging applications wherein wave-type energy can be introduced as an interrogating field and the scattered-field outside the region can be accurately measured. Our system design research enables the practical manifestation of this interrogation/measurement process and our software development, which incorporates the imaging algorithms, allows us to produce the property images. Scientific and technological challenges limit the accuracy and resolution of images obtained using wavefield imaging. These challenges have limited the adoption of EWI for breast imaging but there is reason to believe that research will lead to improvements. Accuracy, rather than resolution, is more important for grain imaging where no competing technology that produces property images exists. The overall long-term focus of this research program is to improve and adapt EWI and USI algorithms, technologies, and systems to the point where these modalities become commercially viable modalities for both the breast imaging application as well as for the grain-imaging application. The main methodological theme is to simultaneously develop algorithmic advances while developing, incorporating, and utilizing system design features that aid the imaging process. The success of this research will open-up new biomedical and novel industrial applications (e.g., non-destructive evaluation). A total of seven graduate students will be involved in this research.