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Abstract #2745

A 72-Channel Whole-Head System for Combined Ultra-Low-Field MRI and Magnetoencephalography

Panu T. Vesanen1, Jaakko O. Nieminen1, Koos C.J. Zevenhoven1, Juhani Dabek1, Juho Luomahaara2, Juha Hassel2, Jari Penttil3, Andrey V. Zhdanov1, Fa-Hsuan Lin1

1Department of Biomedical Engineering and Computational Science, Aalto University, Espoo, Finland; 2VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, Espoo, Finland; 3Aivon Oy, Espoo, Finland; 4Institute of Biomedical Engineering, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan; 5Department of Mathematics, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan; 6Elekta Oy, Helsinki, Finland


Ultra-low-field MRI (ULF MRI) in a microtesla order B0 field utilizes superconducting quantum interference devices (SQUIDs) to measure the MRI signals. Furthermore, magnetoencephalography (MEG) employs SQUIDs to measure the weak magnetic fields generated by the human brain. Based on a commercial whole-head 306-channel MEG device, we present here a 72-channel hybrid device capable of both MEG and ULF MRI. We describe our experimental setup that features a superconducting polarizing coil and field tolerant all-planar SQUID sensors. As a result of our work, we present an image of human hand with an in-plane resolution of 4 mm x 3 mm.