Elucidating Micro-scale Fiber Trajectories at 16μ in Anisotropic Phantoms via Structural Tensor Analysis

Motivation: This study utilizes a custom-designed fiber crossing configuration based on anisotropic textile hollow fiber phantom and harnesses high-resolution 14T MRI to unravel manufactured fiber crossings at a microscopic scale. Goal(s): By applying structural tensor analysis in combination with eigenvalue decomposition, we have estimated underlying fiber orientations and visualized in multi-planar, directional-color-encoded maps. Approach: This innovative approach yielded precise angular measurements across the volume to delineate the expected fiber orientation and crossing angles, thereby validating the structural tensor method's efficacy in capturing complex fiber architecture within a controlled environment. Results: This Phantom can provide a ground truth for validating diffusion MRI based crossing assessments. Impact: This research presents a pivotal advancement for validating MRI-based fiber crossing, offering a novel phantom design for assessing the accuracy and limitations of MRI methods in resolving complex fiber architectures in biological tissues.