Patent ID: 9097781
Filing Date: 2015-08-04
Classification: G01R

Abstract:
1. A nuclear magnetic resonance fingerprinting method, comprising: controlling a nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) apparatus configured with two or more individually controllable transmit (TX) coils in order to apply to a sample, a first NMR fingerprinting radio frequency (RF) excitation from a first of the two or more TX coils and in order to apply to the sample a second, different NMR fingerprinting RF excitation from a second of the two or more TX coils; and controlling the NMR apparatus in order to simultaneously acquire the individual NMR signal evolutions simultaneously produced in response to applying the first NMR fingerprinting RF excitation and the second NMR fingerprinting RF excitation to the sample, controlling the NMR apparatus in order to compare the acquired individual NMR signals to one or more known signal evolutions, controlling the NMR apparatus in order to characterize at least one of the resonant species as a function of comparing the acquired individual NMR signals to the one or more known signal evolutions, where characterizing a resonant species comprises simultaneously identifying three parameters selected from, T1 relaxation associated with the resonant species, T2 relaxation associated with the resonant species, off-resonance relaxation associated with the resonant species, and diffusion weighted relaxation associated with the resonant species, producing parameter maps or images based on the three parameters selected from, of the T1 relaxation associated with the resonant species, the T2 relaxation associated with the resonant species, the off-resonance relaxation associated with the resonant species, and the diffusion weighted relaxation associated with the resonant species, and providing the parameter maps or the images.