A high-temperature superconducting Helmholtz probe for microscopy at 9.4 T

Magn Reson Med. 1999 May;41(5):1032-8. doi: 10.1002/(sici)1522-2594(199905)41:5<1032::aid-mrm23>3.0.co;2-x.

Abstract

The design and operation of a high-temperature superconducting (HTS) probe for magnetic resonance microscopy (MRM) at 400 MHz are presented. The design of the probe includes a Helmholtz coil configuration and a stable open-cycle cooling mechanism. Characterization of coil operating parameters is presented to demonstrate the suitability of cryo-cooled coils for MRM. Specifically, the performance of the probe is evaluated by comparison of signal-to-noise (SNR) performance with that of a copper Helmholtz pair, analysis of B1 field homogeneity, and quantification of thermal stability. Images are presented to demonstrate the SNR advantage of the probe for typical MRM applications.

Publication types

  • Comparative Study
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Algorithms
  • Aluminum Oxide
  • Animals
  • Artifacts
  • Cold Temperature
  • Copper
  • Equipment Design
  • Helium
  • Hot Temperature
  • Image Processing, Computer-Assisted / instrumentation*
  • Magnetic Resonance Imaging / instrumentation*
  • Mice
  • Microscopy / instrumentation*
  • Phantoms, Imaging
  • Radio Waves
  • Ruthenium Compounds
  • Sensitivity and Specificity
  • Signal Processing, Computer-Assisted / instrumentation
  • Thermal Conductivity

Substances

  • Ruthenium Compounds
  • Helium
  • Copper
  • ruthenium tetraoxide
  • Aluminum Oxide