Identification of an embedded tumor using the thermography process and the topological sensitivity analysis method

This work is concerned with a geometric inverse problem related to the thermography concept. The aim is the identification of the shape, size and location of a small embedded tumor from measured temperature on the skin surface. The temperature distribution in the biological tissue is governed by the Pennes model equation. Our proposed approach is based on the Kohn-Vogelius formulation and the topological sensitivity analysis method. The ill-posed geometric inverse problem is reformulated as a topology optimization one. The topological gradient is exploited for locating the zone containing the embedded tumor. The size and shape of the infected zone are approximated using the solution of a scalar parameter estimate problem. The efficiency and accuracy of the proposed approach are justified by some numerical simulations.