RF coil design strategies for improving SNR at the ultrahigh magnetic field of 10.5T

Purpose Toward pushing the boundaries of ultrahigh fields for human brain imaging, we wish to evaluate experimentally achievable SNR relative to ultimate intrinsic SNR (uiSNR) at 10.5T, develop design strategies toward approaching the latter, quantify magnetic field–dependent SNR gains, and demonstrate the feasibility of whole‐brain, high‐resolution human brain imaging at this uniquely high field strength. Methods A dual row 16‐channel self‐decoupled transmit (Tx) and receive (Rx) array was developed for 10.5T using custom Tx/Rx switches. A 64‐channel receive‐only array was built to fit into the 16‐channel Tx/Rx array. Electromagnetic modeling and experiments were used to define safe operational power limits. Experimental SNR was evaluated relative to uiSNR at 10.5T and 7T. Results The 64‐channel Rx array alone captured approximately 50% of the central uiSNR at 10.5T, while an identical array developed for 7T captured about 76% of uiSNR at 7T. The 16‐channel Tx/80‐channel Rx configuration brought the fraction of uiSNR captured at 10.5T to levels comparable to the 64‐channel Rx array at 7T. SNR data displayed an approximate B02$$ {\mathrm{B}}_0^2 $$ dependence over a large central region when evaluated in the context of uiSNR. Whole‐brain, high‐resolution T2*$$ {\mathrm{T}}_2^{\ast } $$‐weighted and T1‐weighted anatomical and gradient‐recalled‐echo BOLD‐EPI functional MRI images were obtained at 10.5T for the first time with such an advanced array. Conclusion We demonstrated the ability to approach the uiSNR at 10.5T over the human brain, achieving large SNR gains over 7T, currently the most commonly used ultrahigh‐field platform. Whole‐brain, high‐resolution anatomical and EPI‐based functional MRI data were obtained at 10.5T, illustrating the promise of greater than 10T fields in studying the human brain.