Basic Physical Principles

of MRI

James Voyvodic, Ph.D.

Brain Imaging and Analysis Center
 Synopsis of MRI

1) Put subject in big magnetic field

2) Transmit radio waves into subject [2~10 ms]
3) Turn off radio wave transmitter
4) Receive radio waves re-transmitted by subject0
5) Convert measured RF data to image
 Many factors contribute to MR
imaging
Quantum properties of nuclear spins
Radio frequency (RF) excitation properties
Tissue relaxation properties
Magnetic field strength and gradients
Timing of gradients, RF pulses, and signal
detection
What kinds of nuclei can be used
for NMR?
Nucleus needs to have 2 properties:
Spin
charge
Nuclei are made of protons and neutrons
Both have spin
Protons have charge
Pairs of spins tend to cancel, so only atoms with
an odd number of protons or neutrons have spin
Good MR nuclei are 1H, 13C, 19F, 23Na, 31P
Hydrogen atoms are best for MRI
Biological tissues are predominantly 12C, 16O, 1H,
and 14N
Hydrogen atom is the only major species that is
MR sensitive
Hydrogen is the most abundant atom in the body
The majority of hydrogen is in water (H2O)
Essentially all MRI is hydrogen (proton) imaging
Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Visible Nuclei
 A Single Proton
There is electric charge The proton also
J
on the surface of the has mass which
proton, thus creating a generates an
small current loop and + angular
generating magnetic + momentum
+
moment . J when it is
spinning.

Thus proton magnet differs from the magnetic bar in that it

also possesses angular momentum caused by spinning.
 Magnetic Moment
B B
I
L
max
L W
F

F = IBL sin
= IBLW =
IBA
Force Torque
Angular Momentum

J = m=mvr
J

m
r
v
The magnetic moment and angular
momentum are vectors lying along the
spin axis

=J

is the gyromagnetic ratio

is a constant for a given nucleus
 How do protons interact with a
magnetic field?
Moving (spinning) charged particle
generates its own little magnetic field
Such particles will tend to line up with external
magnetic field lines (think of iron filings
around a magnet)
Spinning particles with mass have angular
momentum
Angular momentum resists attempts to change
the spin orientation (think of a gyroscope)
Ref: www.simplyphysics.com
 The energy difference between
the two alignment states depends on
the nucleus
E = 2 z Bo
Eh

/2
known as Larmor frequency
/2= 42.57 MHz / Tesla for proton
Resonance frequencies of common nuclei

Note: Resonance at 1.5T = Larmor frequency X 1.5

Electromagnetic Radiation Energy

X-Ray, CT

MRI
 MRI uses a combination of Magnetic
and Electromagnetic Fields
NMR measures the net magnetization of atomic nuclei in the
presence of magnetic fields
Magnetization can be manipulated by changing the magnetic
field environment (static, gradient, and RF fields)
Static magnetic fields dont change (< 0.1 ppm / hr):
The main field is static and (nearly) homogeneous
RF (radio frequency) fields are electromagnetic fields that
oscillate at radio frequencies (tens of millions of times per
second)
Gradient magnetic fields change gradually over space and can
change quickly over time (thousands of times per second)
 Radio Frequency Fields

RF electromagnetic fields are used to manipulate the

magnetization of specific types of atoms
This is because some atomic nuclei are sensitive to
magnetic fields and their magnetic properties are tuned to
particular RF frequencies
Externally applied RF waves can be transmitted into a
subject to perturb those nuclei
Perturbed nuclei will generate RF signals at the same
frequency these can be detected coming out of the
subject
Basic Quantum Mechanics Theory of MR

The Effect of Irradiation to the Spin

System

Lower

Higher
Basic Quantum Mechanics Theory of MR

Spin System After Irradiation

 Net magnetization is the
macroscopic measure of many spins

Bo
M

Bo
M c
T
 Net magnetization
Small B0 produces small net magnetization M
Larger B0 produces larger net magnetization M,
lined up with B0
Thermal motions try to randomize alignment of
proton magnets
At room temperature, the population ratio of anti-
parallel versus parallel protons is roughly 100,000
to 100,006 per Tesla of B0
 Quantum vs Classical Physics
One can consider the quantum mechanical
properties of individual nuclei, but to
consider the bulk properties of a whole
object it is more useful to use classical
physics to consider net magnetization
effects.
 To measure magnetization we
must perturb it
We can only measure magnetization perpendicular
to the B0 field
Need to apply energy to tip protons out of alignment
Amount of energy needed depends on nucleus and
applied field strength (Larmor frequency)
The amount of energy added (duration of the RF
pulse at the resonant frequency) determines how far
the net magnetization will be tipped away from the
B0 axis
A Mechanical Analogy: A Swingset
Person sitting on swing at rest is aligned with
externally imposed force field (gravity)
To get the person up high, you could simply supply
enough force to overcome gravity and lift him (and
the swing) up
g
Analogous to forcing M over by turning on a huge
static B1
The other way is to push back and forth with a tiny
force, synchronously with the natural oscillations of
the swing
Analogous to using a tiny RF B1 over a period of
time to slowly flip M over
 Precession
If M is not parallel to B, then it precesses clockwise around
the direction of B.
Normal (fully relaxed) situation has M parallel to B, and
therefore does not precess

This is like a gyroscope

 Derivation of precession frequency

= Bo
= dJ / dt
J = /

d/dt = ( Bo)

(t) = (xocos Bot + yosin Bot) x + (yocos Bot - xosin Bot) y + zoz

This says that the precession frequency is the

SAME as the larmor frequency
 Recording the MR signal
Need a receive coil tuned to the same RF frequency
as the exciter coil.
Measure free induction decay of net magnetization
Signal oscillates at resonance frequency as net
magnetization vector precesses in space
Signal amplitude decays as net magnetization
gradually realigns with the magnetic field
Signal also decays as precessing spins lose
coherence, thus reducing net magnetization
 NMR signal decays in time
T1 relaxation Flipped nuclei realign with the magnetic
field
T2 relaxation Flipped nuclei start off all spinning
together, but quickly become incoherent (out of phase)
T2* relaxation Disturbances in magnetic field (magnetic
susceptibility) increase the rate of spin coherence T2
relaxation
The total NMR signal is a combination of the total number
of nuclei (proton density), reduced by the T1, T2, and T2*
relaxation components
 T2* decay
Spin coherence is also sensitive to the fact
that the magnetic field is not completely
uniform
Inhomogeneities in the field cause some
protons to spin at slightly different
frequencies so they lose coherence faster
Factors that change local magnetic field
(susceptibility) can change T2* decay
 Different tissues have different relaxation
times. These relaxation time differences can
be used to generate image contrast.

T1 - Gray/White matter
T2 - Tissue/CSF
T2* - Susceptibility (functional MRI)