An angular distortion matrix approach for joint wave-speed tomography and aberration correction in scattering media
Abstract
Despite being one of the most fundamental properties governing wave propagation, the wave-speed distribution is rarely known accurately in reflection imaging. Its estimation relies on analyzing wave distortions undergone by the incident and reflected waves; however, their contribution is dicult to disentangle from the medium reflectivity, particularly in complex media dominated by speckle. Mismatches between assumed and actual wave speeds result in aberrations that degrade the quality of reflectivity images. Yet these aberrations carry information about the underlying wave-speed heterogeneities. Here, we show that an angular distortion matrix, built upon matrix imaging, can unscramble this information to map the wave speed and correct aberrations across the entire eld of view. At each point, this matrix isolates the distortions accumulated by the incident and reected waves along well-dened propagation directions. It reveals strong angular correlations that can be exploited through time-reversal analysis to estimate local phase aberrations, providing observables for wave-speed tomography. The resulting map improves the propagation model used for matrix imaging, after which the process is iterated to rene the wave speed until residual aberrations become negligible. Using ultrasound as proof of concept, we validate the approach in a tissue-mimicking phantom and illustrate its clinical potential in vivo for breast and liver imaging. Sound-speed maps show contrast consistent with a malignant breast lesion and expected values in a healthy liver, while aberration correction sharpens reflectivity images routinely interpreted by clinicians. Beyond ultrasound, the approach extends naturally to any wave modality in which reflection-matrix imaging can be implemented.
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BibTeX
@misc{cui2026angular,
title = {{An angular distortion matrix approach for joint wave-speed tomography and aberration correction in scattering media}},
author = {Chenyu Cui and Flavien Bureau and Foucauld Chamming'S and Alexandre Aubry and Naiara Korta Martiartu},
howpublished = {HAL},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.48550/arxiv.2609.09951},
eprint = {2609.09951},
archivePrefix = {arXiv},
url = {https://hal.science/hal-05758983v1},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - An angular distortion matrix approach for joint wave-speed tomography and aberration correction in scattering media
AU - Chenyu Cui
AU - Flavien Bureau
AU - Foucauld Chamming'S
AU - Alexandre Aubry
AU - Naiara Korta Martiartu
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/09
PB - HAL
DO - 10.48550/arxiv.2609.09951
UR - https://hal.science/hal-05758983v1
AB - Despite being one of the most fundamental properties governing wave propagation, the wave-speed distribution is rarely known accurately in reflection imaging. Its estimation relies on analyzing wave distortions undergone by the incident and reflected waves; however, their contribution is dicult to disentangle from the medium reflectivity, particularly in complex media dominated by speckle. Mismatches between assumed and actual wave speeds result in aberrations that degrade the quality of reflectivity images. Yet these aberrations carry information about the underlying wave-speed heterogeneities. Here, we show that an angular distortion matrix, built upon matrix imaging, can unscramble this information to map the wave speed and correct aberrations across the entire eld of view. At each point, this matrix isolates the distortions accumulated by the incident and reected waves along well-dened propagation directions. It reveals strong angular correlations that can be exploited through time-reversal analysis to estimate local phase aberrations, providing observables for wave-speed tomography. The resulting map improves the propagation model used for matrix imaging, after which the process is iterated to rene the wave speed until residual aberrations become negligible. Using ultrasound as proof of concept, we validate the approach in a tissue-mimicking phantom and illustrate its clinical potential in vivo for breast and liver imaging. Sound-speed maps show contrast consistent with a malignant breast lesion and expected values in a healthy liver, while aberration correction sharpens reflectivity images routinely interpreted by clinicians. Beyond ultrasound, the approach extends naturally to any wave modality in which reflection-matrix imaging can be implemented.
ER -