Advances in single-scan time-encoding magnetic resonance imaging

Time-encoding MRI is a single-scan method that uses traditional k-encoding only in one direction. In the orthogonal “time-encoding” direction, a string of echoes appears in an order that depends on the position of the corresponding spin packets. In one variant of time-encoding, this is achieved by using a series of selective pulses and appropriate gradients in both k-encoding and time-encoding directions. Although time-encoding offers some advantages over traditional single-scan Fourier methods such as echo planar imaging (EPI), the original time-encoding sequence also has some drawbacks that limit its applications. In this work, we show how one can improve several aspects of the original time-encoding sequence. By using an additional gradient pulse one can change the order in which the echoes appear, leading to identical echo times for all echoes, and hence to a uniform signal attenuation due to transverse relaxation and a reduction in average signal attenuation due to diffusion. By rearranging positive and negative gradients one can reduce the switching rate of the gradients. Furthermore, we show how one can implement time-encoding sequences in an interleaved fashion in order to reduce signal attenuation due to transverse relaxation and diffusion, while increasing the spatial resolution.