An optimized head coil design for MR imaging at 0.15 T

Area of Science:

• Medical Imaging
• Biophysics
• Electrical Engineering

Background:

• Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a crucial diagnostic tool.
• Head coils are essential components for acquiring high-resolution brain and cervical spine images.
• Existing head coil designs have limitations in signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) and patient comfort.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and evaluate novel receive-only head coils for a 0.15-T MRI imager.
• To compare the performance of the new coil designs against standard half-saddle and spherical coils.
• To assess improvements in signal-to-noise ratio (S/N), field of view (FOV), and patient comfort.

Main Methods:

• Developed modified solenoid head coils using three or five horseshoe-shaped copper tubing elements.
• Tested coils on a 0.15-T MRI imager with horizontal static and RF transmit fields.
• Compared performance metrics (S/N, FOV, patient comfort) against existing half-saddle and Hammersmith spherical coils.

Main Results:

• The new head coils achieved an 80% improvement in S/N for the upper brain and 20% for cervical vertebrae compared to the half-saddle coil.
• Compared to the spherical coil, the new designs offered a larger FOV and better patient comfort, despite a lower S/N (up to 60%).
• The modified solenoid design demonstrated potential for enhanced MRI diagnostics in the head and neck region.

Conclusions:

• Modified solenoid head coils represent a viable advancement for low-field MRI systems.
• These coils offer a favorable trade-off between S/N, FOV, and patient comfort for specific clinical applications.
• Further research may optimize these designs for broader MRI applications.