F_TDM receiver for parallel acquisition of MRI

An alternative technique (F_TDM) that combines frequency-domain multiplexing and time-domain multiplexing for parallel acquisition of magnetic resonance images is proposed. This method requires only an analogue-to-digital converter and a commercial multi-carrier digital receiver to reduce the cost and complexity of the phased-array receiver system compared with using independent receiver channels. It is also superior to methods that employ only frequency-domain multiplexing or time-domain multiplexing when the number of channels increases. The principle of this technique is discussed and results from a four-channel F_TDM receiver are presented.