Fully mechanically driven Traveling Wave MPI

Abstract

Magnetic Particle Imaging (MPI) is a novel imaging technique utilizing time-varying magnetic fields to determine the distribution of superparamagnetic iron-oxide nanoparticles in 3D. The usage of electrical coils for the generation of the desired strong magnetic field gradient as well as the time-varying magnetic fields allows flexible and fast imaging, but the corresponding high energy consumption also requires sophisticated cooling. The usage of permanent magnets provides the advantage of generating high magnetic field gradients without requiring electrical power and cooling, but also brings limitations with respect of flexibility and the size of the field of view. A novel approach utilizing rotatable Halbach rings is introduced, which overcomes the restrictions of static permanent magnet designs and provides the flexibility of a mechanically driven Traveling Wave MPI scanner.