Superconducting birdcage coils

• US 6,377,047 B1
• Filed: 06/08/2000
• Issued: 04/23/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 06/08/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Agilent Technologies, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Varian Incorporated (Agilent Technologies, Inc.)
• Inventors: Wong, Wai Ha, Romo, Marco A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Lefkowitz, Edward
• Assistant Examiner(s): Fetzner, Tiffany A.
• Application Number:
  US09/589,847
• Time in Patent Office: 684 Days
• Field of Search: 324/318, 324/319, 324/320, 324/321, 324/322, 324/309
• US Class Current: 324/318
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/34007 Manufacture of RF coils, e.g. using printed circuit board technology; additional hardware for providing mechanical support to the RF coil assembly or to part thereof, e.g. a support for moving the coil assembly relative to the remainder of the MR system
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/34023 Superconducting RF coils
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/34046 Volume type coils, e.g. bird-cage coils; Quadrature bird-cage coils; Circularly polarised coils
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/34076 Birdcage coils
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/34092 RF coils specially adapted for NMR spectrometers
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/3453 Transverse electromagnetic [TEM] coils
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/43 Electric condenser making
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/435 Solid dielectric type
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49012 Rotor
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49071 by winding or coiling
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49073 by assembling coil and core

Abstract

Superconducting birdcage coil with low-pass and high-pass coil configurations are formed by using strips each with an elongated sapphire substrate with a layer of a high temperature superconductor (HTS) material grown in a wavy pattern over its entire length on one of its main surfaces. A low-pass coil is formed with a pair of ring elements made of an electrically conductive metal and a plurality of such strips arranged parallel to one another and interconnecting these ring elements at junctions which are spaced peripherally along each of the rings. At each of the junctions, the ring element and the HTS layer form a capacitance. A highpass coil is formed by a plurality of such strips each with electrodes of the HTS material also grown at two end positions separated from each other on the other main surface of its sapphire substrates. These strips are arranged parallel to each other and sequentially around a central axis, each lying in a plane which includes the center axis. The electrodes and the HTS layers on mutually adjacent pairs of strips are closely in face-to-face relationship so as to serve as the ring part of a birdcage configuration containing capacitors.

Claims

1. A superconducting resonance birdcage coil comprising:

a pair of electrically conductive ring elements separated in a longitudinal direction; and

a plurality of elongated members made with a superconducting material and extending in said longitudinal direction and intcrconnecting said ring elements at junctions spaced therebetween along eripheral surfaces of said ring elements, each said elongated member comprising a substrate having two mutually opposed surfaces with a portion of a high temperature superconductor (HTS) layer formed on at least one said surface thereof in a wavy temperature super conductor (HTS) layer formed on at least one said surface thereof in a wavy pattern grown thereon, said HTS layer and said ring elements sandwiching said substrate at each of said junctions to form a built-in capacitor with a predetermined capacitance made with spuerconducting material for providing resonance.

2. The superconducting coil of claim 1 is a low-pass coil.

3. The superconducting coil of claim 2, wherein said substrate is made of a low loss dielectric material having a crystal structure matching to a crystal structure of said HTS layer.

4. The superconducting coil of claim 3, wherein said substrate is made of sapphire.

5. The superconducting coil of claim 3, wherein each said wavy patterned HTS layer has a predetermined inductance.

6. The superconducting coil of claim 5, wherein each said wavy patterned HTS layer includes capcitance-providing end areas with a curving portion therebetween, said each areas are retracted from edges of said substrates.

7. The superconducting coil of claim 2, wherein each said elongated member further comprising a protective layer of an electrically conductive material covering said HTS layer.

8. The superconducting coil of claim 2, wherein each said elongated member comprises two HTS layers respectively formed onto said two mutually opposed surfaces of said substrate.

9. The superconducting coil of claim 8, wherein each said wavy patterned HTS layer has a predetermined inductance.

10. The superconducting coil of claim 9, wherein each said HTS layer is covered by a protective layer of an electrically conductive material.

11. The superconducting coil of claim 9, wherein said HTS layers are patterned so as to minimize a capacitance therebetween.

12. The superconducting coil of claim 2 is a magnetic resonance coil.

13. The superconducting coil of claim 1, wherein said wavy pattern is a serpentine pattern including 180°

degree turns each with a smoothly rounded inner edge.

14. A superconducting resonance birdcage coil comprising:

a plurality of planar separated therebetween elongated members made with a superconducting material and disposed sequentially around and extending radially from a central axis,

each said elongated member comprising a substrate having a first and a second main surfaces, said first main surface being opposite to said second main surface,

a high temperature superconductor (HTS) layer formed on said first surface, and

a pair of high temperature superconductor (HTS) electrodes formed at two respective opposite spots of said second main surface, said HTS layer and said HTS electrodes forming a built-in capacitor with a predetermined capacitance therebetween made of superocnducting material, a capacitance between one said HTS layer of one said elongated member and said HTS electrodes of adjacent thereto elongated member being larger than the predetermined capacitance between said layer and said electrodes of one said elongated member.

15. The superconducting coil of claim 14 is a high-pass coil.

16. The superconducting coil of claim 15, wherein said substrate is made of a low loss dielectric material having a crystal structure matching to a crystal structure of said HTS layer.

17. The superconducting coil of claim 16, wherein said substrate is made of sapphire.

18. The superconducting coil of claim 17 is a magnetic resonance coil.