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Motion contrast optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) entails a precise identification of dynamic flow signals from the static background, but an intermediate region with voxels exhibiting a mixed distribution of dynamic and static scatterers is almost inevitable in practice, which degrades the vascular contrast and connectivity. In this work, the static-dynamic intermediate region was pre-defined according to the asymptotic relation between inverse signal-to-noise ratio (iSNR) and decorrelation, which was theoretically derived for signals with different flow rates based on a multi-variate time series (MVTS) model. Then the ambiguous voxels in the intermediate region were further differentiated using a shape mask with adaptive threshold. Finally, an improved OCTA classifier was built by combining shape, iSNR, and decorrelation features, termed as SID-OCTA, and the performance of the proposed SID-OCTA was validated experimentally through mouse retinal imaging.

As a new emerging seismic method for delineating subsurface structure, the potential of ambient noise tomography is investigated for mineral deposit targeting at exploration scale. This passive seismic technique was used to image the subsurface 3-D shear-wave velocity of the Caosiyao porphyry molybdenum (Mo) deposit in the North China Craton. Intriguingly, the key structures of this giant porphyry mineral system down to the depth of 2 km are characterized by distinct shear-wave velocity anomalies, with ore deposition sites and fluid pathways (faults) characterized by distinct velocity lows, while fluid drivers (granites) generate velocity highs. The 3-D shear-wave velocity anomalies, along with seismic reflection profile and potential field data, allow us to delineate the deep-seated ore-controlling structures including fault systems, granitic plutons and even ore deposition sites under thickly covered sediments in the study area. The results suggest that the occurrence of the Caosiyao ore deposit is closely related to the huge amount of magma fluid intruding along the channel of Datong-Shangyi fault at a depth of gt;2 km. Our study demonstrates that the ambient noise tomography technique has the accuracy and resolution needed for mineral exploration targeting at deposit scale, with a relatively lower environmental impact as well as lower cost than active-source seismology.

Dynamic OCT angiography (OCTA) is an attractive approach for monitoring stimulus-evoked hemodynamics; however, a 4D (3D space and time) dataset requires a long acquisition time and has a large data size, thereby posing a great challenge to data processing. This study proposed a GPU-based real-time data processing pipeline for dynamic inverse SNR-decorrelation OCTA (ID-OCTA), offering a measured line-process rate of 133 kHz for displaying OCT and OCTA cross-sections in real time. Real-time processing enabled automatic optimization of angiogram quality, which improved the vessel SNR, contrast-to-noise ratio, and connectivity by 14.37, 14.08, and 9.76%, respectively. Furthermore, motion-contrast 4D angiographic imaging of stimulus-evoked hemodynamics was achieved within a single trail in the mouse retina. Consequently, a flicker light stimulus evoked an apparent dilation of the retinal arterioles and venules and an elevation of the decorrelation value in the retinal plexuses. Therefore, GPU ID-OCTA enables real-time and high-quality angiographic imaging and is particularly suitable for hemodynamic studies.

Optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) takes the flowing red blood cells (RBCs) as intrinsic contrast agents, enabling fast and three-dimensional visualization of vasculature perfusion down to capillary level, without a requirement of exogenous fluorescent injection. Various motion-contrast OCTA algorithms have been proposed to effectively extract dynamic blood flow from static tissues utilizing the different components of OCT signals (including amplitude, phase and complex) with various operations (such as differential, variance and decorrelation). Those algorithms promote the application of OCTA in both clinical diagnosis and scientific research. The purpose of this paper is to provide a systematical review of OCTA based on the inverse SNR and decorrelation features (ID-OCTA), mainly including the OCTA contrast origins, ID-OCTA imaging, quantification and applications.