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Abstract #3590

Multi-Banded T2-Weighted fMRI with a Z-Encoding RF Coil Array for Whole Brain Coverage at 7T

Johannes Ritter1, Pierre-Francois Van De Moortele1, Steen Moeller1, Eddie Auerbach1, Kamil Ugurbil1, Gregor Adriany1

1CMRR, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, United States


Due to significant B1 inhomogeneities at high fields it is challenging to achieve effective whole brain fMRI. However, it has recently been demonstrated at 7 T that B1-shim homogeneity, T2-weighted contrast and hence activation in different target volumes of the human brain can be improved significantly with a multi-region B1-shim Here we built upon this and present a new integrated approach, consisting of a novel multi banded sequence, a 3D B1 shim T/R coil array and large volume B1-shim. Only the combination of these components allow to effectively address SAR and B1-inhomogeneity challenges and enable whole head T2 weighted fMRI.