On the robustness of model-based algorithms for photoacoustic tomography: Comparison between time and frequency domains

• Published in: Review of scientific instruments Vol. 92; no. 11; pp. 114901 - 114909
• Main Authors: Hirsch, L., González, M. G., Rey Vega, L.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Melville American Institute of Physics 01.11.2021
• Subjects: Algorithms; Errors; Frequency domain analysis; Image quality; Image reconstruction; Mathematical models; Parameters; Photoacoustic effect; Qualitative analysis; Robustness (mathematics); Scientific apparatus & instruments; Sensitivity analysis; Uncertainty
• ISSN: 0034-6748; 1089-7623; 1089-7623
• DOI: 10.1063/5.0065966

For photoacoustic image reconstruction, certain parameters such as sensor positions and speed of sound have a major impact on the reconstruction process and must be carefully determined before data acquisition. Uncertainties in these parameters can lead to errors produced by a modeling mismatch, hindering the reconstruction process and severely affecting the resulting image quality. Therefore, in this work, we study how modeling errors arising from uncertainty in sensor locations affect the images obtained by matrix model-based reconstruction algorithms based on time domain and frequency domain models of the photoacoustic problem. The effects on the reconstruction performance with respect to the uncertainty in the knowledge of the sensors location are compared and analyzed both in a qualitative and quantitative fashion for both time and frequency models. Ultimately, our study shows that the frequency domain approach is more sensitive to this kind of modeling errors. These conclusions are supported by numerical experiments and a theoretical sensitivity analysis of the mathematical operator for the direct problem.