Console Electronics Upgrade for 11.7T MRI System

描述（由申请人提供）：在此S10申请中，我们申请资金为现有的11.7T/8.9cm垂直孔径显微成像系统购买Bruker Avance III电子控制台升级和配件。现有仪器于2001年安装，部分由NIH共享仪器赠款（S10 RR 15704）资助。这个磁铁系统已被证明是非常宝贵的匹兹堡核磁共振中心的生物医学研究和运行超过100小时一周。然而，我们现在迫切需要更换电子控制台、软件和配件，因为：（1）主要的电子系统，包括梯度控制器、RF/梯度放大器、数字化仪等，比现有技术落后了三代。这些组件无法运行最先进的图像采集方案，更换部件将很快无法使用，（2）制造商（布鲁克）不再支持我们过时的控制台电子设备的成像软件升级。如果没有软件升级，我们将无法应用新的和新兴的成像方法，使我们的用户受益，（3）关键硬件组件已经失败，如我们的X核高功率RF放大器，或濒临失败，如我们的梯度线圈和几个RF谐振器。现有的11.7T仪器位于卡内基梅隆大学匹兹堡核磁共振生物医学研究中心。自1988年以来，NMR中心一直由NIH（P41 EB-001977）资助作为生物医学资源中心。NMR中心致力于推进最先进的应用MRI和磁共振光谱（MRS），以了解组织和器官功能，使用动物模型，并使这些工具可用于更大的生物医学研究社区。核磁共振中心已经有了操作和维护仪器的人员和广泛的基础设施。升级后的MRI仪器的可用性将服务于大量NIH支持的生物医学研究领域的研究项目，包括细胞跟踪，免疫学，精神病学，心脏病学，器官移植排斥，癌症，头部创伤和细胞治疗。总的来说，拟议的设备升级对于将11.7T仪器保持为最先进的系统以支持5个主要用户和12个次要用户的正在进行的研究至关重要。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): In this S10 application, we are requesting funds to purchase a Bruker Avance III electronics console upgrade and accessories for an existing 11.7T/8.9cm vertical-bore micro imaging system. The existing instrument was installed in 2001 and funded in part by an NIH shared instrumentation grant (S10 RR15704). This magnet system has proved to be invaluable to the Pittsburgh NMR Center for Biomedical Research and runs over 100 hours a week. However, we now have an overwhelming and urgent need to replace the electronics console, software, and accessories because: (1) the major electronics systems, including items such as the gradient controller, RF/gradient amplifiers, digitizers, etc., are now three-generations behind current technologies. These components cannot run the most modern image acquisition schemes, and replacement parts will soon become unavailable, (2) the manufacturer (Bruker) no longer supports imaging software upgrades for our outdated console electronics. Without software upgrades, we are handicapped in our ability to apply new and emerging imaging methods that benefit our users, and (3) key hardware components have already failed, such as our X-nuclei high-power RF amplifier, or on the verge of failing, such as our gradient coil and several RF resonators. The existing 11.7T instrument is housed at the Pittsburgh NMR Center for Biomedical Research at Carnegie Mellon University. The NMR Center has been continuously funded as a Biomedical Resource Center by the NIH (P41 EB-001977) since 1988. The NMR Center is dedicated to advancing state-of-the-art applications MRI and magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) to understand tissue and organ function using animal models and making these tools available to the larger biomedical research community. The NMR Center already has in place personnel and an extensive infrastructure to operate and maintain the instrument. The availability of upgraded MRI instrumentation will serve a large number of NIH-supported research projects across diverse areas of biomedical research, including cell tracking, immunology, psychiatry, cardiology, organ transplant rejection, cancer, head trauma, and cellular therapy. Overall, the proposed equipment upgrade is critical for maintaining the 11.7T instrument as a state-of-the-art system to support ongoing research for 5 Major and 12 Minor users.