# Distortion-Corrected Diffusion MRI Using Rotated-View EPI and Joint Field-Map/Image Estimation with Gaussian Primitives

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2606.31521 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2606.31521/

## Key facts

- No citing papers in the map yet (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Builds on 14 of its 39 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 30 Jun 2026.

## Builds on (most cited first, 14 of 14)

- [Adam: A Method for Stochastic Optimization](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1412.6980/) (2014)
- [3D Gaussian Splatting for Real-Time Radiance Field Rendering](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2308.04079/) (2023)
- [Instant Neural Graphics Primitives with a Multiresolution Hash Encoding](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2201.05989/) (2022)
- [Implicit Neural Representations with Periodic Activation Functions](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2006.09661/) (2020)
- [NeRP: Implicit Neural Representation Learning with Prior Embedding for Sparsely Sampled Image Reconstruction](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2108.10991/) (2021)
- [SynthMorph: learning contrast-invariant registration without acquired images](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2004.10282/) (2020)
- [SynthStrip: Skull-Stripping for Any Brain Image](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2203.09974/) (2022)
- [On hallucinations in tomographic image reconstruction](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2012.00646/) (2020)
- [Neural Implicit k-Space for Binning-free Non-Cartesian Cardiac MR Imaging](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2212.08479/) (2022)
- [ICoNIK: Generating Respiratory-Resolved Abdominal MR Reconstructions Using Neural Implicit Representations in k-Space](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2308.08830/) (2023)
- [Three-Dimensional MRI Reconstruction with Gaussian Representations: Tackling the Undersampling Problem](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2502.06510/) (2025)
- [FD-Net: An Unsupervised Deep Forward-Distortion Model for Susceptibility Artifact Correction in EPI](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2303.10436/) (2023)
- [Physics-Informed Implicit Neural Representations for Joint B0 Estimation and Echo Planar Imaging](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2503.00230/) (2025)
- [Highly efficient MRI through multi-shot echo planar imaging](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1908.00983/) (2019)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Echo Planar Imaging (EPI) is the standard acquisition technique for diffusion and functional neuroimaging, enabling rapid imaging but suffering from geometric distortions caused by B0 field inhomogeneities. Existing correction methods first reconstruct distorted images using parallel imaging, then estimate the B0 field and correct the distortion in the image domain. In this sequential process, reconstruction artifacts at high acceleration factors and low SNR at high diffusion b-values degrade B0 estimation and limit the overall correction quality. We propose a physics-informed framework that jointly estimates the B0 field and distortion-free image directly from k-space data, without depending on an intermediate parallel-imaging reconstruction for the correction. The image and the B0 field are each represented as a superposition of Gaussian primitives embedded within an MRI physics forward model. The explicit, continuous parameterization captures both smooth regions and tissue boundaries and supports rotated-view EPI acquisitions without interpolation. The diffusion-weighted image is modeled as real and non-negative, with the image phase absorbed into a per-shot phase factor. Rotated views distribute distortions across multiple phase-encoding orientations, improving point spread function isotropy and providing stronger constraints for B0 estimation. On in vivo brain diffusion EPI, the proposed method attains the closest brain-boundary agreement with a distortion-free structural reference, with the largest improvement over sequential methods at high b-value and high acceleration. Extensive visual comparisons further show improved detail fidelity and noise suppression.