© The Institution of Engineering and Technology
MRI has the potential to produce clear anatomic, as well as functional, images of the human body. However, the ability to diagnose is limited by signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and the resolution of current medical systems. To remove the challenges prevalent due to the use of high-field scanners, dedicated RF coils are used. Transverse electromagnetic (TEM) coils have the advantage of providing a homogeneous magnetic field throughout the region, but with a low SNR, while surface coils have the advantage of providing a higher SNR, but with low homogeneity. The research discussed combines both advantages into one by utilising transmit-only TEM RF coils (8-channel) along with receive-only surface coils (varying in number) to obtain good homogeneity, as well as significant SNR improvements, from MRI throughout the human brain.
References
-
-
1)
-
4. Zhao, W., Cohen-Adad, J., Polimeni, J.R., et al: ‘Nineteen-channel receive array and four-channel transmit array coil for cervical spinal cord imaging at 7 T’, Magn. Reson. Med., 2014, 77, pp. 291–300 (doi: 10.1002/mrm.24911).
-
2)
-
1. Yoo, H., Gopinath, A., Vaughan, J.T.: ‘A method to localize RF B1 field in high-field magnetic resonance imaging systems’, Trans. Bio-med. Eng., 2012, 59, pp. 3365–3371 (doi: 10.1109/TBME.2012.2208965).
-
3)
-
2. Wiggins, G.C., Potthast, A., Triantafyllou, C., Wiggins, C.J., Wald, L.L.: ‘Eight-channel phased array coil and detonable TEM volume coil for 7 T brain imaging’, Magn. Reson. Med., 2005, 54, pp. 235–240 (doi: 10.1002/mrm.20547).
-
4)
-
3. Wiggins, G.C., Triantafyllou, C., Potthast, A., Reykowski, A., Nittka, M., Wald, L.L.: ‘32-channel 3 Tesla receive-only phased-array head coil with soccer-ball element geometry’, Magn. Reson. Med., 2006, 56, pp. 216–223 (doi: 10.1002/mrm.20925).
-
5)
-
5. Vaughan, J.T., Griffiths, J.R.: ‘RF coils for MRI’ (John Wiley and Sons Publication, New York, USA, 2012).
http://iet.metastore.ingenta.com/content/journals/10.1049/el.2015.3984
Related content
content/journals/10.1049/el.2015.3984
pub_keyword,iet_inspecKeyword,pub_concept
6
6
Combined RF coils for brain imaging at 7 T with receive and transmit resonators