• Superconductivity and Cryogenics
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.23-29
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• 2009

The unique features of HTS offer opportunities and challenges to a number of applications. In this paper we focus on NMR and MRI magnets, illustrating them with the NMR/MRI magnets that we are currently and will shortly be engaged: a 1.3 GHz NMR magnet, an "annulus" magnet, and an $MgB_2$whole-body MRI magnet. The opportunities with HTS include: 1) high fields (e.g., 1.3 GHz magnet); 2) compactness (annulus magnet); and 3) enhanced stability despite liquid-helium-free operation ($MgB_2$whole-body MRI magnet). The challenges include: 1) a large screening current field detrimental to spatial field homogeneity (e.g., 1.3 GHz magnet); 2) uniformity of critical current density (annulus magnet); and 3) superconducting joints ($MgB_2$magnet).

• Progress in Superconductivity and Cryogenics
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• v.11 no.4
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• pp.1-7
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• 2009

The unique features of HTS offer Opportunities and challenges to a number of applications. In this paper we focus on NMR and MRI magnets, illustrating them with the NMR/MRI magnets that we are currently and will shortly be engaged: a 1.3GHz NMR magnet, an "annulus" magnet, and an $MgB_2$ whole-body MRI magnet. The opportunities with HTS include: 1) high fields (e.g., 1.3GHz magnet); 2) compactness (annulus magnet); and 3) enhanced stability despite liquid-helium-free operation ($MgB_2$ whole-body MRI magnet). The challenges include: 1) a large screening current Beld detrimental to spatial field homogeneity (e.g., 1.3 GHz magnet); 2) uniformity of critical current density (annulus magnet); and 3) superconducting joints ($MgB_2$ magnet).

• Progress in Superconductivity and Cryogenics
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.30-34
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• 2021

Superconducting magnets have paved the way for opening new horizons in designing an electromagnet of a high field magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) device. In the first phase of the superconducting MRI magnet era, low-temperature superconductor (LTS) has played a key role in constructing the main magnet of an MRI device. The highest magnetic resonance (MR) field of 11.7 T was indeed reached using LTS, which is generated by the well-known Iseult project. However, as the limit of current carrying capacity and mechanical robustness under a high field environment is revealed, it is widely believed that commercial LTS wires would be challenging to manufacture a high field (>10 T) MRI magnet. As a result, high-temperature superconductor together with the conducting cooling approach has been spotlighted as a promising alternative to the conventional LTS. In 2020, the Korean government launched a national project to develop an HTS magnet for a high field MRI magnet as an extent of this interest. We have performed a design study of a 7 T 320 mm winding bore HTS MRI magnet, which may be the ultimate goal of this project. Thus, in this paper, design study results are provided. Electromagnetic design and analysis were performed considering the requirements of central magnetic field and spatial field uniformity.

• Progress in Superconductivity and Cryogenics
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.1-12
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• 2003

In this paper we present a brief description and summary results of each of our recent activities in three areas, all devoted to NMR and MRI superconducting magnet technologies: 1) development of a high-field LTS / HTS NMR magnet; 2) development of a novel digital flux injector for slightly resistive NMR magnets; and 3) a proposal fer a low-cost MRI magnet system based on $MgB_2$ composite and an innovative cryogenic design / operation concept.

• Investigative Magnetic Resonance Imaging
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.179-201
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• 2019

Portable low-cost magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) systems have the potential to enable "point-of-care" and timely MRI diagnosis, and to make this imaging modality available to routine scans and to people in underdeveloped countries and areas. With simplicity, no maintenance, no power consumption, and low cost, permanent magnets/magnet arrays/magnet assemblies are attractive to be used as a source of static magnetic field to realize the portability and to lower the cost for an MRI scanner. However, when taking the canonical Fourier imaging approach and using linear gradient fields, homogeneous fields are required in a scanner, resulting in the facts that either a bulky magnet/magnet array is needed, or the imaging volume is too small to image an organ if the magnet/magnet array is scaled down to a portable size. Recently, with the progress on image reconstruction based on non-linear gradient field, static field patterns without spatial linearity can be used as spatial encoding magnetic fields (SEMs) to encode MRI signals for imaging. As a result, the requirements for the homogeneity of the static field can be relaxed, which allows permanent magnets/magnet arrays with reduced sizes, reduced weight to image a bigger volume covering organs such as a head. It offers opportunities of constructing a truly portable low-cost MRI scanner. For this exciting potential application, permanent magnets/magnet arrays have attracted increased attention recently. A magnet/magnet array is strongly associated with the imaging volume of an MRI scanner, image reconstruction methods, and RF excitation and RF coils, etc. through field patterns and field homogeneity. This paper offers a review of permanent magnets and magnet arrays of different kinds, especially those that can be used for spatial encoding towards the development of a portable and low-cost MRI system. It is aimed to familiarize the readers with relevant knowledge, literature, and the latest updates of the development on permanent magnets and magnet arrays for MRI. Perspectives on and challenges of using a permanent magnet/magnet array to supply a patterned static magnetic field, which does not have spatial linearity nor high field homogeneity, for image reconstruction in a portable setup are discussed.

• Proceedings of the Korea Institute of Applied Superconductivity and Cryogenics Conference
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• 2000.02a
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• pp.173-176
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• 2000

MRI magnet has generally multi-section coil configurations to generate highly homogeneous magnetic field. Each coil is bridged by a shunt resistor to protect the superconducting magnet during quench. In order to optimize the shunt resistor, self inductance of each coil and mutual inductances between coils should be determined beforehand. Therefore, we calculated the self and the mutual inductances of MRI magnet with OPERA program for electromagnetic analysis.

• Proceedings of the Korea Institute of Applied Superconductivity and Cryogenics Conference
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• 2001.02a
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• pp.121-124
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• 2001

The research results on the superconducting magnet for whole body MRI are presented. The magnet consists of main coil with 6 solenoid coils, shielding coil with 2 solenoid coils and 6 sets of cryogenic shim coil. The ferromagnetic shim assembly is installed on the inside wall of the room temperature bore for shimming inhomogeneous field components generated due to manufacturing tolerances, installation misalignments and external ferromagnetic materials near the magnet. Also, the magnet is enclosed with the horizontal type cryostat with 80cm room temperature bore to keep the magnet under the operating temperature. The magnetic field distributions within the imaging volume were measured by the NMR field mapping system. Through the test, the central field of magnet was 1.5 Tesla and the field homogeneity of 9.3 ppm has been obtained on 40cm DSV(the diameter of spherical volume) and using this magnet, comparatively good images for human body, fruits and water phantoms have been achieved.

• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.95-99
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• 2005

We have performed EEG current source imaging on the cortical surface using visual evoked potentials (VEPs) recorded inside a 3.0 T MRI magnet. In order to remove ballistocardiogram (BCG) artifacts in the VEPs, an improved BCG template subtraction technique is devised. Using the cortically constrained current source imaging technique and pattern-reversal visual stimulations, we have obtained current source maps from 10 subjects. To validate the EEG current source imaging inside the magnet, we have compared the current source maps to the ones obtained outside the magnet. The experimental results demonstrate that there is a strong correspondence between the current source maps, proving that current source imaging is feasible with the evoked potentials recorded inside a 3.0 T MRI magnet.

• Proceedings of the KIEE Conference
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• 2000.07b
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• pp.597-599
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• 2000

Fabrication of superconducting magnet system needs high-degree technical know-how, which require not only a lot of investment of man-power and finance but also that of long time. Until now, we have met many technical problems and it have been solved by trial and error. In fact, we have got chance to come into contact with researches into the magnet design for MRI easily but did not contact with the process of fabrication and the techniques. We introduced process of fabrication and techniques for MRI magnet system until before the superconducting magnet combine with cryostat in Korea Electrotechnology Research Institute.

• The Transactions of the Korean Institute of Electrical Engineers B
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• v.49 no.6
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• pp.421-430
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• 2000

This paper describes an optimal design method which is applied a weighted least square (WLS) method for Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) system. An optimal design approach is presented for a homogeneity superconducting magnet with the superconducting active shield especially for a magnetic resonance imaging system. The WLS is used to obtain the optimal configurations using the least amount and minimum volume of conductor, exhibiting the smallest level of field inhomogeneity and resulting in the least level of stray field. The proposed model is used to design a multiple-shield configuration for a 1.5 T MRI magnet. The field homogeneity is required less than 5 gauss stray field contour within 4m axially and 3m radially from origin. The designed magnet with the actively magnetic shielding coil out of main coils is analyzed by FEM and theoretical analysis method, investigated the field homogeneity.