In vivo with an atomic magnetometer

描述（由申请人提供）：我们建议开发一种基于原子磁强计（AM）的非低温超低场（ULF）磁共振成像（MRI）系统，用于一般生物医学成像，并展示首个手部和头部的解剖活体图像。与传统的高场扫描仪相比，该系统具有以下几个优势：安全、便携、低成本、与其他系统兼容、应用灵活、操作简单、增强对比度（对肿瘤等异常）。在许多情况下，当常规MRI扫描仪受到限制时，这将有利于MRI诊断。例如，所提出的系统可以部署在美国的偏远（农村）地区、小型医院、战场和不发达国家的医院，在这些地方，传统扫描仪在后勤和经济上都无法使用。由于缺乏低温，免维护操作和降低成本，所提出的系统也比基于squid的ULF MRI系统具有优势，squid已经被我们的团队和其他人成功地用于生物医学应用。利用并行MRI原理的系统可以实现显著的成本降低，这对于加速MRI扫描是可取的，因为多通道AM可以以多通道SQUID阵列的一小部分成本构建（40k美元vs 1000k美元）。如果我们能够获得适合大多数常见MRI诊断程序的体内扫描质量，这是我们的最终目标，基于原子磁强计的ULF MRI扫描仪可以彻底改变MRI技术。详细论证了该方法的可行性，包括初步结果、原理和优化步骤的详细说明。公共卫生相关性：我们建议开发一种基于原子磁强计（AM）的非低温超低场（ULF）磁共振成像（MRI）系统，用于一般生物医学成像，并展示首个手部和头部的活体解剖图像。与传统的高场扫描仪相比，该系统具有安全、便携、低成本、与其他系统兼容、应用灵活、操作简单、对比度增强（如肿瘤等异常）等优点，以及与基于squid的ULF MRI系统相比的优势，如无低温、免维护操作和低成本。如果我们成功获得适合大多数常见MRI诊断程序的体内扫描质量，并且本提案的初步结果和分析证明了这一点的可行性，基于原子磁强计的ULF MRI扫描仪可以在医疗医院成为现实，并彻底改变MRI诊断。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): We propose to develop a non-cryogenic ultra-low-field (ULF) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) system based on an atomic magnetometer (AM) for general biomedical imaging and demonstrate the first anatomical in vivo images of the hand and the head. The system will have several advantages over conventional high-field scanners: safety, portability, low cost, compatibility with other systems, flexibility in applications, simplicity in operation, enhanced contrast (to anomalies such as tumors). In many cases, this will be a benefit to MRI diagnostics when conventional MRI scanners are restricted. For example, the proposed system can be deployed in remote (rural) areas of the US, small hospitals, battlefields, and hospitals in undeveloped countries, where logistically and economically conventional scanners cannot be used. Because of the absence of cryogenics, maintenance-free operation, and cost reduction, the proposed system also has an advantage over ULF MRI systems based on SQUIDs, which have already been used successfully by our group and others in biomedical applications. Significant cost reduction can be achieved for the system utilizing parallel MRI principles, desirable for accelerating MRI scans, because a multi-channel AM can be built at a fraction of the cost of the multi-channel SQUID array (40k$ vs 1000k$). If we obtain the quality of in vivo scans suitable for most common diagnostic MRI procedures, which is our ultimate goal, the ULF MRI scanners based on atomic magnetometers can revolutionize MRI technology. Detailed proof of the feasibility, including preliminary results and the detailed description of the principles and optimization steps, is provided. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: We propose to develop a non-cryogenic ultra-low-field (ULF) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) system based on an atomic magnetometer (AM) for general biomedical imaging and demonstrate the first anatomical in vivo images of the hand and the head. The system will have several advantages over conventional high-field scanners such as safety, portability, low cost, compatibility with other systems, flexibility in applications, simplicity in operation, and enhanced contrast (to anomalies such as tumors), as well as the advantage over ULF MRI systems based on SQUIDs such as the absence of cryogenics, maintenance-free operation, and low cost. If we succeed in obtaining the quality of in vivo scans suitable for most common diagnostic MRI procedures, and preliminary results and analysis in this proposal prove the feasibility of this, the ULF MRI scanners based on atomic magnetometers can become reality in medical hospitals and revolutionize MRI diagnostics.