Parallel Imaging with RASER Using Multiband Frequency-Modulated Excitation Pulses

¹High-Field Magnetic Resonance Center, Max-Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, Tbingen, Germany; ²Center for Magnetic Resonance Research, Minneapolis, MN, USA

The many advantages of the recently proposed RASER sequence have been demonstrated. Hence, RASER holds great promises for functional MRI (fMRI), particularly for studies of the orbital-frontal cortex and other brain regions near air cavities, which cause distortion and signal loss in conventional EPI methods. However, the single-shot RASER sequence implemented so far inherently presents a set of temporal and spatial limitations that hinders it feasibility and full potential for fMRI applications. It is believed that parallel imaging will help overcome such restrictions. In this work, the RASER acquisition and reconstruction scheme is extended for parallel imaging using tailored pulses for simultaneous multi-band excitation.