Abstract #0704

DeMeester G, Shvartsman S, Morich M

In this work we describe a discrete gradient coil design method that does not include some of the essential steps of continuous current based minimum energy design methods. The key concept is that all characteristics of a transverse gradient, such as coil inductance, spatial distribution of the magnetic field, coil resistance, and slew rate of the coil, are expressed through the set of z-intercepts where the coil current pattern intersects the cardinal axes, for example Zi along f=0 and f=p for an X-gradient. We illustrate the advantages of the discrete design method with the example of a whole body gradient.