Why have ZTE or bSSFP when you can have both?

Motivation: Zero Echo-Time MRI has numerous advantages over conventional pulse sequences but also several drawbacks including inefficient k-space sampling and limited PD/T1 contrasts. Goal(s): Improving the efficiency, SNR and contrasts available with ZTE. Approach: Utilising a 3D rosette trajectory to combine the best aspects of the ZTE and bSSFP sequences. Results: Preliminary data indicating the feasibility of the bSSFP ZTE sequence and highlighting limits imposed by current MR hardware. Impact: Highly efficient sequences enable more useable data to be acquired in a single scan. We present a combined bSSFP ZTE sequence that pushes efficiency to the limits of typical MR hardware.