초록

Equipment for cooling an HTS receive coil (4) in an MRI scanner to a temperature below the transition temperature of the HTS comprises a refrigeration unit such as a Stirling cooler (1) the cold head (2) of which is connected by a non-metallic thermally conductive rod (3) to the receive coil (4).

대표청구항 ▼

The invention claimed is: 1. Equipment for cooling the receive coil of a nuclear magnetic resonance image instrument which equipment comprises a refrigeration unit having a cold head, a thermal conductor formed from a thermally conducting ceramic with a thermal conductivity of at least 10 W/m.K whi

The invention claimed is: 1. Equipment for cooling the receive coil of a nuclear magnetic resonance image instrument which equipment comprises a refrigeration unit having a cold head, a thermal conductor formed from a thermally conducting ceramic with a thermal conductivity of at least 10 W/m.K which thermal conductor is in direct thermal contact with the cold head and in which there are means for thermally contacting the thermal conductor with the receive coil of a nuclear magnetic resonance image instrument. 2. Equipment according to claim 1 in which the conductor is formed from a thermally conducting ceramic with a thermal conductivity of at least 30 W/m.K at 300K. 3. Equipment according to claim 1 in which the receive coil is made from a high temperature superconductor. 4. Equipment according to claim 1 in which the thermal conductor is made from a compound selected from aluminium nitride, aluminium oxide, beryllium oxide, magnesium oxide or silicon carbide in sintered ceramic form. 5. Equipment according to claim 1 in which the thermal conductor is made from a compound selected from aluminium nitride, aluminium oxide, beryllium oxide, magnesium oxide or silicon carbide in single crystal form. 6. Equipment as claimed in claim 1 in which the receive coil is made from YBa2Cu3Ox. 7. Equipment as claimed in claim 1 in which the refrigeration unit incorporates a Stirling cycle cooler. 8. Equipment for cooling the receive coil of a nuclear magnetic resonance image instrument which equipment comprises a refrigeration unit incorporating a Stirling cycle cooler having a cold head, a thermal conductor formed from a thermally conducting ceramic which thermal conductor is in direct thermal contact with the cold head and in which there are means for thermally contacting the thermal conductor with the receive coil of a nuclear magnetic resonance image instrument. 9. Equipment according to claim 8 in which the thermal conductor is made from a compound selected from aluminium nitride, aluminium oxide, beryllium oxide, magnesium oxide or silicon carbide in sintered ceramic form. 10. Equipment according to claim 8 in which the thermal conductor is made from a compound selected from aluminium nitride, aluminium oxide, beryllium oxide, magnesium oxide or silicon carbide in single crystal form. 11. Equipment as claimed in claim 8 in which the receive coil is made from YBa2Cu3Ox. 12. A method for cooling the receive coil of an MRI scanner in which method a refrigeration unit with a cold head is operated to cool the cold head and a non-metallic thermal conductor formed from a thermally conducting ceramic with a thermal conductivity of at least 10 W/m.K is placed in direct thermal contact with the cold head and the receive coil whereby the receive coil is cooled.