Animation 2.1 (T1 vs T2)

This animation is the animation to support Figures 2.14 and 2.16. It demonstrates the relative timings of T1 recovery and T2 decay. Although both occur simultaneously, the majority of T2 decay in most tissues occurs sooner than T1 recovery. T2 decay predominantly occurs between 50 and 200 ms after the removal of the RF excitation pulse, whereas T1 recovery predominantly occurs between 200 and 2000 ms. This explains why a TE between 70 and 120 ms is the most appropriate for T2 weighting. By selecting a TE between these values, the echo is collected when T2 decay processes are most dominant. It is also why a TR between 300 and 700 ms is selected to achieve T1 weighting. By selecting a TR between these values, contrast is generated when T1 recovery processes are most dominant.