Magnetically Coupled, Passive Birdcage Resonator for Boosting Sensitivity of 1.5T MRI

Abstract

performance of Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) systems depends on signal-to-noise ratio provided by the radio-frequency (RF) coils of the scanner. In this work we explore the potential of boosting the imaging signal by focusing the magnetic field in the region of interest (the brain of a patient). The focusing is achieved by introducing a passive resonant structure around the patient's head. It is shown that in 1.5 tesla systems sensitivity can be increased by over 7dB, which can lead to significant improvement of image quality.