Near real-time parallel-transmit pulse design

With many MRI scans lasting several minutes, patient motion is a common problem, especially with uncooperative subjects such as paediatric patients or patients with dementia or Parkinson’s. Realizing the finer-resolution that higher field strengths offer through the availability of increased SNR necessitates even longer scans, exacerbating this problem. While prospective motion correction techniques can compensate for motion at lower field strengths, such techniques are not directly applicable at higher field strengths, when more complicated parallel-transmit pulses are used. This study proposes a pulse design technique that can design multi-spoke and simultaneous multi-slice parallel-transmit pulses in less than one second, while adhering to peak-voltage limits, local and global SAR.