Researchers bring high res magnetic resonance imaging to nanometer scale
A new technique will open the door for major advances in understanding new materials, virus particles and proteins that cause diseases like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s
A new technique will open the door for major advances in understanding new materials, virus particles and proteins that cause diseases like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s
By Media RelationsA new technique that brings magnetic resonance imaging to the nanometer scale with unprecedented resolution will open the door for major advances in understanding new materials, virus particles and proteins that cause diseases like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s.
Researchers at the Institute for Quantum Computing at the University of Waterloo used a new type of hardware and numerical algorithms to implement high-precision spin control, which allowed them to image proton spins with a resolution below 2nm.
Traditional MRI revolutionized medical imaging and transformed our understanding of the structure and function of biological systems, but it is limited to millimetre resolution.
“This work extends the powerful capabilities of MRI to the nanometer scale and provides a whole new lens with which to view the structure and function of complex biomolecules,” said Raffi Budakian, lead investigator on the paper and a professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Waterloo.
The current work extends the capabilities of Magnetic Resonance Force Microscopy (MRFM) — an ultra-sensitive technique for nanometer scale MRI — by combining it with the ability to precisely control atomic spins.
“Now that we have a high degree of control on the spins, we can also apply the well-developed MRI techniques on an extremely small scale,” said Budakian. “We now have unprecedented access to understanding complex biomolecules.”
The paper appears in Physical Review X.
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The University of Waterloo acknowledges that much of our work takes place on the traditional territory of the Neutral, Anishinaabeg and Haudenosaunee peoples. Our main campus is situated on the Haldimand Tract, the land granted to the Six Nations that includes six miles on each side of the Grand River. Our active work toward reconciliation takes place across our campuses through research, learning, teaching, and community building, and is co-ordinated within the Office of Indigenous Relations.