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Optimizing magnetometers arrays and analysis pipelines for multivariate pattern analysis

Abstract:

Background: Multivariate pattern analysis (MVPA) has proven an excellent tool in cognitive neuroscience. It also holds a strong promise when applied to optically-pumped magnetometer-based magnetoencephalography.

New method: To optimize OPM-MEG systems for MVPA experiments this study examines data from a conventional MEG magnetometer array, focusing on appropriate noise reduction techniques for magnetometers. We determined the least required number of sensors needed for robust MVPA for image categorization experiments.

Results: We found that the use of signal space separation (SSS) without a proper regularization significantly lowered the classification accuracy considering a sub-array of 102 magnetometers or a sub-array of 204 gradiometers. We also found that classification accuracy did not improve when going beyond 30 sensors irrespective of whether SSS has been applied.

Comparison with existing methods: The power spectra of data filtered with SSS has a substantially higher noise floor that data cleaned with SSP or HFC. Consequently, MVPA decoding results obtained from the SSS-filtered data are significantly lower compared to all other methods employed.

Conclusions: When designing MEG system based on SQUID magnetometers optimized for multivariate analysis for image categorization experiments, about 30 magnetometers are sufficient. We advise against applying SSS filters without a proper regularization to data from MEG and OPM systems prior to performing MVPA as this method, albeit reducing low-frequency external noise contributions, also introduces an increase in broadband noise. We recommend employing noise reduction techniques that either decrease or maintain the noise floor of the data like signal-space projection, homogeneous field correction and gradient noise reduction.

Publication status:
Published
Peer review status:
Peer reviewed

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Publisher copy:
10.1016/j.jneumeth.2024.110279

Authors

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Institution:
University of Oxford
Division:
MSD
Department:
Psychiatry
Oxford college:
St Catherine's College
Role:
Author
ORCID:
0000-0001-8193-8348


More from this funder
Funder identifier:
https://ror.org/029chgv08
Grant:
207550/Z/17/Z
More from this funder
Funder identifier:
https://ror.org/0439y7842
Grant:
EP/T001046/1
More from this funder
Funder identifier:
https://ror.org/0187kwz08
Grant:
NIHR203316
More from this funder
Funder identifier:
https://ror.org/00cwqg982
Grant:
BB/R018723/1


Publisher:
Elsevier
Journal:
Journal of Neuroscience Methods More from this journal
Volume:
412
Article number:
110279
Publication date:
2024-09-17
Acceptance date:
2024-09-09
DOI:
EISSN:
1872-678X
ISSN:
0165-0270
Pmid:
39265820


Language:
English
Keywords:
Pubs id:
2041557
Local pid:
pubs:2041557
Deposit date:
2026-05-15
ARK identifier:

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