Wearable high-density diffuse optical tomography (WHD-DOT) instrument for mapping human brain activity

We developed a wearable HD-DOT instrument (WHD-DOT) that provides a safe and portable neuroimaging modality with enhanced image resolution and brain specificity. Our design replaces bulky fibers with smart electronic cylindrical source and detector modules that brush through hair and maintain stable optode-scalp coupling. Our current prototype has four independent WHD patches to create a system with 32 sources and 32 detectors at 13 mm optode spacing. Light level vs. distance curves confirm dynamic range and cross-talk specifications match fiber-based HD-DOT. We tested feasibility using retinotopic mapping of visual cortex. Optode location error between photometric measurements and MRI-based fiducials is <5mm.