Measuring time-dependent diffusion on a high-performance head-only gradient system at 3T: influence and correction of gradient nonlinearity

Oscillating gradient spin echo (OGSE) sequence is an effective approach to measure time-dependent diffusion processes at short diffusion times. High-performance, head-only gradient systems open new opportunities for using OGSE to study time-dependent diffusion with both high b-values and oscillating frequencies, such as diffusion kurtosis imaging (DKI). One source of error that can be more problematic for the head-only gradients is gradient nonlinearity (GNL). Here, we measure the time dependence of diffusion tensor imaging (DTI)/DKI in human brains with OGSE on a head-only MAGNUS gradient and investigate the influence of GNL on the time dependence measures of diffusivity/kurtosis.