Magnetic resonance imaging with an optical atomic magnetometer
- Shoujun Xu*,†,
- Valeriy V. Yashchuk‡,
- Marcus H. Donaldson*,†,
- Simon M. Rochester§,
- Dmitry Budker§,¶, and
- Alexander Pines*,†,‖
- *Materials Sciences Division,
- ¶Nuclear Sciences Division, and
- ‡Advanced Light Source, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720; and
- Departments of †Chemistry and
- §Physics, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720
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Contributed by Alexander Pines, June 28, 2006
Abstract
We report an approach for the detection of magnetic resonance imaging without superconducting magnets and cryogenics: optical atomic magnetometry. This technique possesses a high sensitivity independent of the strength of the static magnetic field, extending the applicability of magnetic resonance imaging to low magnetic fields and eliminating imaging artifacts associated with high fields. By coupling with a remote-detection scheme, thereby improving the filling factor of the sample, we obtained time-resolved flow images of water with a temporal resolution of 0.1 s and spatial resolutions of 1.6 mm perpendicular to the flow and 4.5 mm along the flow. Potentially inexpensive, compact, and mobile, our technique provides a viable alternative for MRI detection with substantially enhanced sensitivity and time resolution for various situations where traditional MRI is not optimal.
Footnotes
- ‖To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: pines{at}berkeley.edu
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Author contributions: S.X., V.V.Y., S.M.R., D.B., and A.P. designed research; and S.X. and M.H.D. performed research.
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Conflict of interest statement: No conflicts declared.
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See Commentary on page 12657.
- © 2006 by The National Academy of Sciences of the USA
