se sequence alagrams snow: RF excitation pulse, slice select gradient waveform, phase encode gradient waveform, frequency encode gradient waveform, and signal (echo) acquisition rajor pulse sequences used in MRI: Spin Echo (SE), Gradient Recalled Echo (GRE) and Inversion Recovery (IR) n Echo: Initial 90° pulse followed by 180’ pulse after time TE/2, signal produced at time TE becomes one row of k-space After a time TR, the whole process is repeated to acquire another row of k-space TR and TE affect weighting. Brain example: * For TR near brain T1 values, bright signal for short T1 values such as white matter and fat (T1 weighting). * For TE near brain T2 values, bright signal for long 72 tissues such as CSF (T2 weighting). yin Echo (continued...): Long TR and short TE produces proton density weighting Low sensitivity to main magnetic field inhomogeneity & magnetic susceptibilities FSE generally preferred over SE (faster). Multiple, evenly spaced refocusing echoes (echo train) following initial 90° RF pulse are acquired to fill multiple lines of K-space (number of lines = number of echoes) During echo-train collection, transverse magnetic signal decreases for each line « echo-train (T2 blurring) 72 blurring decreases SNR and alters T2 weighting and sharpness of image vadient Recalled Echo: Initial small (<90°) flip angle, followed by a gradient magnetic field, causing dephasing. Reversal of the gradient magnetic field causes rephasing of transvers magnetization, a gradient echo results GRE is fast but generally sensitive to main magnetic field inhomogeneity and magnetic susceptibilities (often producing T2* weighted images) Advanced GRE imaging variants exist using techniques such as spoiling,rersion Recovery: 180° imersion pulse used to "prepare" image contrast characteristics before imaging pulse sequence begins IR can be used with SE and GE sequences STIR is a SE sequence in which fat signal (having short T1) is suppressed using : short inversion time (Tl) FLAIR is a SE sequence in which fluid signal (having long T2) is suppressed usin a long inversion time IR used with GE sequences to control T1 weighting MRI: All slices undergo RF excitation and detection at the same time 3D allows for thinner slices and no resolution lost with multiplanar image reformatting because all voxels are isotropic age acquisition time: Image acquisition time = TR x Np x NEX (for 2D); Image acquisition time = TR x Np x NEXx S (for 3D) Acquisition times are affected by: ETL, parallel imaging acceleration factor, rectanaular field of vew