A general algorithm for magnetic resonance imaging simulation: a versatile tool to collect information about imaging artefacts and new acquisition techniques.

An innovative algorithm for Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) capable of demonstrating the source of various artefacts and driving the hardware and software acquisition process is presented. The algorithm is based on the application of the Bloch equations to the magnetization vector of each point of the simulated object, as requested by the instructions of the MRI pulse sequence. The collected raw data are then used to reconstruct the image of the object.