Tunable-frequency high-field electron paramagnetic resonance

A tunable-frequency methodology based on backward wave oscillator sources in high-frequency and -field EPR (HFEPR) is described. This methodology is illustrated by an application to three non-Kramers transition metal ion complexes and one Kramers ion complex. The complexes are of: Ni(II) (S=1) as found in dichlorobistriphenylphosphanenickel(II), Mn(III) (S=2) as found in mesotetrasulfonatoporphyrinatomanganese(III) chloride, Fe(II) (S=2) as found in ferrous sulfate tetrahydrate, and Co(II) (S=3/2) as found in azido(tris(3-tert-butylpyrazol-1-yl)hydroborate)cobalt(II). The above Ni(II) and Mn(III) complexes have been studied before by HFEPR using the multifrequency methodology based on Gunn oscillator sources, but not by the present method, while the Fe(II) and Co(II) complexes presented here have not been studied by any form of HFEPR. Highly accurate spin Hamiltonian parameters can be obtained by the experimental methodology described here, in combination with automated fitting procedures. This method is particularly successful in determining g-matrix parameters, which are very difficult to extract for high-spin systems from single frequency (or a very limited set of multi-frequency) HFEPR spectra, but is also able to deliver equally accurate values of the zero-field splitting tensor. The experimental methods involve either conventional magnetic field modulation or an optical modulation of the sub-THz wave beam. The relative merits of these and other experimental methods are discussed.     

Nuclear magnetic resonance in inhomogeneous magnetic fields

The response of the spin system has been investigated by numerical simulations in the case of a nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) experiment performed in inhomogeneous static and radiofrequency fields. The particular case of the NMR-MOUSE was considered. The static field and the component of the radiofrequency field perpendicular to the static field were evaluated as well as the spatial distribution of the maximum NMR signal detected by the surface coil. The NMR response to various pulse sequences was evaluated numerically for the case of an ensemble of isolated spins (1/2). The behavior of the echo train in Carr-Purcell-like pulse sequences used for measurements of transverse relaxation and self-diffusion was simulated and compared with the experiment. The echo train is shown to behave qualitatively differently depending on the particular phase schemes used in these pulse sequences. Different echo trains are obtained, because of the different superposition of Hahn and stimulated echoes forming mixed echoes as a result of the spatial distribution of pulse flip angles. The superposition of Hahn and stimulated echoes originating from different spatial regions leads to distortions of the mixed echoes in intensity, shape, and phase. The volume selection produced by Carr-Purcell-like pulse sequences is also investigated for the NMR-MOUSE. The developed numerical simulation procedure is useful for understanding a variety of experiments performed with the NMR-MOUSE and for improving its performance. Copyright 2000 Academic Press.     

Extrinsic versus intrinsic high-field and high-frequency EPR properties of magnetic materials

Performing high-field and high-frequency electron paramagnetic resonance (HFHFEPR) experiments on a one-dimensional (1-D) magnetic system, we put in evidence a number of effects that can be attributed to extrinsic properties of the sample and have to be distinguished from the intrinsic physical properties of the investigated system. We have studied a 1-D molecular-based magnetic system made up by trivalent gadolinium ions (Gd³⁺) and the nitronyl-nitroxide radicals (NIT-Et = 2-ethyl-4,4,5,5,-tetramethyl-4,5-dihydro-1-H-imidazolyl-1-oxyl-3-oxide). In addition to showing the effects of short-range magnetic correlation on HFHFEPR spectra of this compound, this paper is also intended to be a starting point of an investigation of the methods according to which HFHFEPR spectra should be performed in order to estimate the importance, minimize and possibly correct the effects of orientation, propagation and demagnetization phenomena when dealing with magnetic materials.     

Constrained resonance in magnetic self-organization

In a linear driven problem with integral constraints, resonant phenomena can still persist but occur away from the fundamental frequencies of the unconstrained linear system. The frequency and the mode structure of the constrained resonances are found to be the intrinsic properties of the undriven and unconstrained linear systems. This is shown with a Taylor-relaxed magnetized plasma in a torus that conserves the net toroidal flux. The constrained resonance leads to a number of modifications to the standard paradigm of Taylor relaxation in a toroidal plasma.     

Parametric resonance in magnetic fluids

A new resonance effect in the nonlinear behaviour of magnetically anisotropic objects in an alternating external magnetic field is proposed. Ferromagnetic particles with a “frozen” magnetic moment (due to a strong magnetic anisotropy), when located in an external alternating magnetic field, are able to rotate (or vibrate) and to transfer energy from the external field to the medium. The numerical solution of the appropriate parametrically driven nonlinear equation shows all types of nonlinear dynamic behaviour, including transition to chaos. The sensitivity of the proposed phenemenon could be used for an experimental analysis of the size distribution of the ferromagnetic particles in a ferrofluid or of the size of “magnetic holes”.     

Modulation-induced sidebands in magnetic resonance

The induced transition probability between Zeeman levels was calculated in the case of a nuclear spin under a modulated magnetic field. It was shown that the intensities of the sidebands can be accurately calculated for a given lineshape of the signal when no significant saturation occurs. This result suggested a technique for accurately measuring the modulation amplitude of magnetic fields. This suggestion was confirmed experimentally in the case of an rf field produced by an ENDOR coil. A quantum-mechanical explanation for the production of sidebands was also found during the course of this calculation.     

Current issues in heavy fermion superconductivity

An attempt is made to summarize our current understanding of the superconductivity occuring in heavy fermion systems. The last three years have seen the discovery of two new superconductors (UNi₂Al₃ and UPd₂Al₃), much more use of directional probes to investigate the anisotropy of the gap structure, further experimental and theoretical inquiry into a possible coupling of magnetic and superconducting order parameters, wider application of pressure and uniaxial stress to examine the onset of ordering and some new indications of unconventional superconductivity. These topics will be reviewed along with others of current interest.     

170 nm nuclear magnetic resonance imaging using magnetic resonance force microscopy

We demonstrate one-dimensional nuclear magnetic resonance imaging of the semiconductor GaAs with 170 nm slice separation and resolve two regions of reduced nuclear spin polarization density separated by only 500 nm. This was achieved by force detection of the magnetic resonance, magnetic resonance force microscopy (MRFM), in combination with optical pumping to increase the nuclear spin polarization. Optical pumping of the GaAs created spin polarization up to 12 times larger than the thermal nuclear spin polarization at 5K and 4T. The experiment was sensitive to sample volumes of 50 microm(3) containing approximately 4 x 10(11)71 Ga/Hz. These results demonstrate the ability of force-detected magnetic resonance to apply magnetic resonance imaging to semiconductor devices and other nanostructures.     

Three dimensional magnetic resonance imaging by magnetic resonance force microscopy with a sharp magnetic needle

An electropolished magnetic needle made of Nd(2)Fe(14)B permanent magnet was used for obtaining better spatial resolution than that achieved in our previous work. We observed the magnetic field gradient |G(Z)|=80.0G/microm and the field strength B=1250G at Z approximately 8.8 microm from the top of the needle. The use of this needle for three dimensional magnetic resonance force microscopy at room temperature allowed us to achieve the voxel resolution to be 0.6 microm x 0.6 microm x 0.7 microm in the reconstructed image of DPPH phantom. The acquisition time spent for the whole data collection over 64 x 64 x 16 points, including an iterative signal average by six times per point, was about 10 days.     

Multi-dimensional magnetic resonance imaging in a stray magnetic field

Stray field imaging has been extensively utilized in the last 10 years to perform very high resolution imaging of samples in a single dimension using the massive field gradient present in the fringe of a superconducting magnet. By spinning the sample around the magic-angle, the stray field gradient is successively reoriented along three orthogonal directions in the sample reference frame, allowing the acquisition of a full three-dimensional Fourier image, thereby providing the possibility to perform multi-dimensional very high-resolution imaging with standard nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy equipment. Here, we show multi-dimensional images demonstrating the feasibility of this technique.     

Near-zero-field nuclear magnetic resonance

We investigate nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) in near zero field, where the Zeeman interaction can be treated as a perturbation to the electron mediated scalar interaction (J?coupling). This is in stark contrast to the high-field case, where heteronuclear J?couplings are normally treated as a small perturbation. We show that the presence of very small magnetic fields results in splitting of the zero-field NMR lines, imparting considerable additional information to the pure zero-field spectra. Experimental results are in good agreement with first-order perturbation theory and with full numerical simulation when perturbation theory breaks down. We present simple rules for understanding the splitting patterns in near-zero-field NMR, which can be applied to molecules with nontrivial spectra.     

Autonomous magnetic resonance imaging

Access to Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) across developing countries ranges from being prohibitive to scarcely available. For example, eleven countries in Africa have no scanners. One critical limitation is the absence of skilled manpower required for MRI usage. Some of these challenges can be mitigated using autonomous MRI (AMRI) operation. In this work, we demonstrate AMRI to simplify MRI workflow by separating the required intelligence and user interaction from the acquisition hardware. AMRI consists of three components: user node, cloud and scanner. The user node voice interacts with the user and presents the image reconstructions at the end of the AMRI exam. The cloud generates pulse sequences and performs image reconstructions while the scanner acquires the raw data. An AMRI exam is a custom brain screen protocol comprising of one T₁-, T₂- and T₂*-weighted exams. A neural network is trained to incorporate Intelligent Slice Planning (ISP) at the start of the AMRI exam. A Look Up Table was designed to perform intelligent protocolling by optimizing for contrast value while satisfying signal to noise ratio and acquisition time constraints. Data were acquired from four healthy volunteers for three experiments with different acquisition time constraints to demonstrate standard and self-administered AMRI. The source code is available online. AMRI achieved an average SNR of 22.86 ± 0.89 dB across all experiments with similar contrast. Experiment #3 (33.66% shorter table time than experiment #1) yielded a SNR of 21.84 ± 6.36 dB compared to 23.48 ± 7.95 dB for experiment #1. AMRI can potentially enable multiple scenarios to facilitate rapid prototyping and research and streamline radiological workflow. We believe we have demonstrated the first Autonomous MRI of the brain.