What impact does increasing TE have on scan time?

Increasing the Echo Time (TE) in MRI directly affects the scan time. As TE is the time between the application of the radiofrequency pulse and the peak of the echo signal received, increasing it inherently prolongs the intervals for data acquisition. This means that the amount of time before the next pulse can be applied is extended, leading to an increase in overall scan time.

While other factors can influence scan time, such as the repetition time (TR) and the specific imaging sequences used, a longer TE does not maintain an unchanged scan time, as it directly correlates to the duration spent acquiring the necessary data for the images. Therefore, understanding the relationship between TE and scan time is crucial for optimizing MRI scans.

In summary, increasing TE leads to longer scan times due to the increased duration of the acquisition process, which does not result in unchanged scan times.