Sparse Bayesian learning for the Laplace transform inversion in dynamic light scattering (Q629564)

In this investigation, a new method is described using the sparse Bayesian learning (SBL) algorithm of Tipping to obtain an optimal and reliable solution to the Laplace transform inversion in dynamic light scattering (DLS). The linear inverse problem in DLS has numerical solutions that depend on their domains and dimensions. For a given domain and dimension, a sparse solution in an SBL framework is the most-probable solution and can be used for classifying a system of objects by a few relevant values. Recently, the authors have proved that the SBL algorithm of Tipping is suitable for treating cataract in ocular lenses by describing the opacity of a lens with a few dominant sizes of crystallin proteins in the lens. However, since the sparseness of SBL solutions cannot reflect a true system, it is necessary to develop a new method by using the SBL algorithm to give a true description and, at the same time, a useful classification of the opacity of lenses. In this article, the writers generate a set of sparse solutions of different domains but of the same dimension, and then superimpose them to give a general solution with its dimension treated as a regularization parameter. An optimal solution, which provides a reliable description of a particle system, is determined by the L-curve criterion for selecting the suitable value of the regularization parameter. The performance of the method is evaluated by analyzing simulated data generated from unimodal and bimodal distributions. From the reconstructed distributions, it has been shown that this method gives high resolution comparable to the sophisticated Bryan's maximum-entropy algorithm, which provides better resolution than CONTIN. In addition, the method has been applied to experimental DLS data of the ocular lenses of a fetal calf and a Rhesus monkey to obtain optimal particle size distributions of crystallins and the crystallin aggregates in the lenses. Finally, the authors conclude by discussing possible improvements of their method in analyzing DLS data and solving any linear inverse problem by an SBL algorithm.