International Collaboration in Chemistry: Sensitivity & Contrast Enhancement in Solution MR Spectroscopy & Microimaging by Indirect Detection and Spin Amplification

磁共振 (MR) 光谱/成像已成为化学、物理、生物学、材料和医学领域各种应用中最成功的分析技术之一。在这个由化学系化学测量和成像项目资助的项目中，林永雅教授将在加州大学洛杉矶分校和国立台湾大学（NTU）之间建立新的国际合作，开发创新方法，显着提高磁共振光谱和成像的灵敏度和对比度，这是现代磁共振的两个主要挑战。这对于生物分子磁共振尤其重要，其中感兴趣的分子中的原子仅具有弱磁性，或者当分子仅以低浓度存在时。在化学部化学测量和成像项目资助的最新研究中，林教授和他的同事发现并研究了溶液磁共振中的非线性/混沌动力学。非线性/混沌系统所表现出的众所周知的“蝴蝶效应”或“雪崩效应”，即对初始条件的极端敏感性，将发展成为增强磁共振波谱和成像灵敏度/对比度的强大新方法。拟议的研究利用加州大学洛杉矶分校小组和南洋理工大学小组的尖端技术来实现显着的磁共振灵敏度/对比度增强，从而将其影响扩展到生物医学、生物化学和生物物理学。其智力优点是：（i）首次利用非线性/混沌自旋动力学的新兴方面来减轻MR灵敏度/对比度的基本限制； (ii) 设计基于高场间接检测和自旋放大的通用灵敏度/对比度增强机制； (iii)通过电子反馈控制装置控制非线性自旋动力学并优化放大增益。这种合作对于两个团队来说将是高度互补且有益的，并且只有通过团队成员和资源的这种独特组合才可能实现。其更广泛的影响是（i）利用独特的资源和互补能力，并通过形成新的国际合作展示高水平的协同作用； (ii) 构建非线性 MR 模拟器和基于网络的交互式课程，用于研究、指导、教学和推广，以实现研究和教育之间的交叉融合。

Magnetic resonance (MR) spectroscopy/imaging has become one of the most successful analytical techniques for a diverse array of applications in chemistry, physics, biology, materials, and medicine. In this project funded by the Chemical Measurement and Imaging Program of the Chemistry Division, Professor Yung-Ya Lin will establish new international collaboration between UCLA and National Taiwan University (NTU) to develop innovative approaches to significantly enhance the sensitivity and contrast in MR spectroscopy and imaging, two major challenges in modern MR. This is particularly important for biomolecular MR where the atoms in the molecules of interest are only weakly magnetic, or when the molecules are present only at low concentrations.From recent research funded by the Chemical Measurement and Imaging Program of the Chemistry Division, Prof. Lin and his coworkers have discovered and investigated nonlinear/chaotic dynamics in solution MR. The well-known "butterfly effect" or "avalanching effect" exhibited by nonlinear/chaotic systems, i.e., extreme sensitivity to initial conditions, will be developed into powerful new approaches for sensitivity/contrast enhancement for MR spectroscopy and imaging. The proposed research utilizes cutting edge techniques from both the UCLA group and the NTU group to achieve significant MR sensitivity/contrast enhancement, thereby extending its impacts to biomedicine, biochemistry, and biophysics. Its intellectual merits are: (i) Utilizing emerging aspects of nonlinear/chaotic spin dynamics for the first time to alleviate the fundamental limitation in MR sensitivity/contrast; (ii) Engineering a general sensitivity/contrast enhancement mechanism based on indirect detection and spin amplification at high fields; and (iii) Controlling the nonlinear spin dynamics and optimizing the amplification gains by an electronic feedback control device. This collaboration will be highly complementary and beneficial to both teams and is only possible through this unique combination of team members and resources. Its broader impacts are (i) Making use of unique resources and complementary capabilities and demonstrating a high level of synergy through the formation of new international collaborations; (ii) Constructing a Nonlinear MR Simulator and web-based interactive course for research, mentorship, teaching, and outreach to enable cross-fertilization between research and education.