Source Identification by Consensus-Based Optimization

A consensus-based optimization (CBO) algorithm, which enables derivative and mesh-free optimization, is presented to localize a bioluminescent source. The light propagation is modeled by the radiative transfer equation approximated by spherical harmonics. The approach is investigated for a hierarchy of simplified diffusion models in simulated environments and tissue-mimicking phantoms. In simulations, the state-of-the-art diffusive approximation gives reliable results for heavily scattering media. However, higher-order models achieve better localization and more accurate source intensities for deeper sources and in the presence of artificial noise in strongly absorbing, but only moderately scattering media. In phantoms, higher-order models give lower approximation errors and the most accurate localization, even for a high scattering coefficient. These results demonstrate the potential of CBO to render higher-order models at lower computational cost while ensuring accurate localization in bioluminescence tomography.