Realistic three-layer head phantom for optically pumped magnetometer-based magnetoencephalography

Fuzhi Cao; Zhenfeng Gao; Shengjie Qi; Kaihua Chen; Min Xiang; Nan An; Xiaolin Ning

doi:10.1016/j.compbiomed.2023.107318

Realistic three-layer head phantom for optically pumped magnetometer-based magnetoencephalography

Comput Biol Med. 2023 Sep:164:107318. doi: 10.1016/j.compbiomed.2023.107318. Epub 2023 Aug 9.

Authors

Fuzhi Cao¹, Zhenfeng Gao², Shengjie Qi², Kaihua Chen³, Min Xiang⁴, Nan An⁵, Xiaolin Ning⁶

Affiliations

¹ Key Laboratory of Ultra-Weak Magnetic Field Measurement Technology, Ministry of Education, School of Instrumentation and Optoelectronic Engineering, Beihang University, Beijing 100191, China; Hangzhou Institute of National Extremely-weak Magnetic Field Infrastructure, Hangzhou 310028, China.
² Key Laboratory of Ultra-Weak Magnetic Field Measurement Technology, Ministry of Education, School of Instrumentation and Optoelectronic Engineering, Beihang University, Beijing 100191, China.
³ Quanum Life Sciences, Hangzhou, 310051, China.
⁴ Key Laboratory of Ultra-Weak Magnetic Field Measurement Technology, Ministry of Education, School of Instrumentation and Optoelectronic Engineering, Beihang University, Beijing 100191, China; Hangzhou Institute of National Extremely-weak Magnetic Field Infrastructure, Hangzhou 310028, China; Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Ultra-Weak Magnetic-Field Space and Applied Technology, Hangzhou Innovation Institute, Beihang University, Hangzhou, 310051, China; Hefei National Laboratory, Hefei 230088, China.
⁵ Hangzhou Institute of National Extremely-weak Magnetic Field Infrastructure, Hangzhou 310028, China; Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Ultra-Weak Magnetic-Field Space and Applied Technology, Hangzhou Innovation Institute, Beihang University, Hangzhou, 310051, China; Hefei National Laboratory, Hefei 230088, China. Electronic address: annan@buaa.edu.cn.
⁶ Key Laboratory of Ultra-Weak Magnetic Field Measurement Technology, Ministry of Education, School of Instrumentation and Optoelectronic Engineering, Beihang University, Beijing 100191, China; Hangzhou Institute of National Extremely-weak Magnetic Field Infrastructure, Hangzhou 310028, China; Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Ultra-Weak Magnetic-Field Space and Applied Technology, Hangzhou Innovation Institute, Beihang University, Hangzhou, 310051, China; Hefei National Laboratory, Hefei 230088, China. Electronic address: ningxiaolin@buaa.edu.cn.

PMID: 37595517
DOI: 10.1016/j.compbiomed.2023.107318

Abstract

The advent of optically pumped magnetometer-based magnetoencephalography (OPM-MEG) has introduced new tools for neuroscience and clinical research. As it is still under development, the achievable performance of OPM-MEG remains to be tested, particularly in terms of source localization accuracy, which can be influenced by various factors, including software and hardware aspects. A feasible approach to comprehensively test the performance of the OPM-MEG system is to utilize a phantom that simulates the actual electrophysiological properties of the head while ensuring the precise locations of dipole sources. However, conventional water or dry phantoms can only simulate a single-sphere head model. In this work, a more realistic three-layer phantom was designed and fabricated. The proposed phantom included the scalp, skull, and cortex tissues of the head, as well as the simulated dipole sources. The scalp and cortex tissues were simulated using an electrolyte solution, while the dipole source was constructed from a coaxial cable. All main structures in the phantom were produced using 3D printing techniques, making the phantom easy to manufacture. The fabricated phantom was tested on a 36-channel OPM-MEG system, and the results showed that the dipole source inside the phantom could generate a magnetic field distribution on the scalp that was close to its theoretical values. The average source localization accuracy of 5.51 mm verified the effectiveness of the designed phantom and the performance of our OPM-MEG system. This work provides an effective test platform for OPM-MEG.

Keywords: 3D printed; Head phantom; Magnetoencephalography (MEG); OPM-MEG; Source localization.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Cerebral Cortex*
Magnetic Fields
Magnetoencephalography*
Phantoms, Imaging
Scalp