There is a very real need for compact MRI’s which are small and light enough to be essentially portable. This is especially true when you consider strokes. Rapid diagnosis enables fast treatment and is essential before commencing treatment to determine the type of stroke.
As such there is a clear need for a compact MRI. Using HTS provides the means to achieve this by supporting a very high current density. Thus, we can reduce the size, weight and inductance of the MRI magnet. We can further reduce the mass of the magnet by using a flux pump as the power source. As a result the magnet can be rapidly deployed and brought to the patient rather than the other way around opening up the possibility that ambulances can be equipped with MRI machines. This would revolutionise stroke diagnosis and treatment, saving lives and minimising clinical effects damage and recovery times.
We have built a magnet which is designed to run at 500 Amps and will provide a 1T imaging field. The magnet has an inductance of 85 mH and uses 3km of tape. The internal diameter of the magnet is 55cm which is sufficient to fit the shoulders of an adult male. The magnet has been designed in Cambridge, built in China by Professor Liu’s team and assembled in Cambridge. We will present data from the magnet re the overall uniformity of the field, the stability of the field and the overall mass of the system.

Keywords: MRI, Flux Pumps, Cephalic Imaging, HTS