Image reconstructions with the rotating RF coil

J Magn Reson. 2009 Dec;201(2):186-98. doi: 10.1016/j.jmr.2009.09.009. Epub 2009 Sep 11.

Abstract

Recent studies have shown that rotating a single RF transceive coil (RRFC) provides a uniform coverage of the object and brings a number of hardware advantages (i.e. requires only one RF channel, averts coil-coil coupling interactions and facilitates large-scale multi-nuclear imaging). Motion of the RF coil sensitivity profile however violates the standard Fourier Transform definition of a time-invariant signal, and the images reconstructed in this conventional manner can be degraded by ghosting artifacts. To overcome this problem, this paper presents Time Division Multiplexed-Sensitivity Encoding (TDM-SENSE), as a new image reconstruction scheme that exploits the rotation of the RF coil sensitivity profile to facilitate ghost-free image reconstructions and reductions in image acquisition time. A transceive RRFC system for head imaging at 2 Tesla was constructed and applied in a number of in vivo experiments. In this initial study, alias-free head images were obtained in half the usual scan time. It is hoped that new sequences and methods will be developed by taking advantage of coil motion.

Publication types

  • Evaluation Study
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Computer-Aided Design
  • Equipment Design
  • Equipment Failure Analysis
  • Image Enhancement / instrumentation*
  • Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted / instrumentation*
  • Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted / methods
  • Magnetic Resonance Imaging / instrumentation*
  • Magnetics / instrumentation*
  • Phantoms, Imaging
  • Radio Waves
  • Reproducibility of Results
  • Rotation
  • Sensitivity and Specificity
  • Transducers*