IBM team boosts MRI resolution - 100 million times finer than current MRI

[edesignuk]

The resolution of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has been given a massive boost by a team at computer giant IBM.

MRI is used as an imaging technique in medicine to visualise the internal structure of the human body.

The researchers demonstrated this imaging at a resolution 100 million times finer than current MRI.

The advance could lead to important medical applications and is powerful enough to see bacteria, viruses and proteins, say the researchers.

The researchers said it offered the ability to study complex 3D structures at the "nano" scale.

The step forward was made possible by a technique called magnetic resonance force microscopy (MRFM), which relies on detecting very small magnetic forces.

BBC.

The big blue's R&D departments never cease to amaze.

 

[sushi]

The big blue's R&D departments never cease to amaze.

Awesome.

This will definitely be great for the medical community.

Big Blue R&D is amazing. So many cool things over the years.

 

[Abstract]

Wow, MRI was one of those imaging modalities that I thought couldn't improve, much like I think about CT images.

I figured proton CT was the way of the future, but I guess I was wrong. Do you know how difficult i would be to fit a 1 km diamater synchrotron into a hospital?

 

[Sdashiki]

Only makes sense to be able to basically never find the limit for this kind of imaging. Theoretically one could see down to at least the molecular level as technology advances.

Id think that at a certain nano distance magnetic fields and quantum foam or something like that, wont be detectable using the traditional process of MRI.

 

[Thanatoast]

Personally, I'm waiting for them to fit it in a tricorder...

 

[comictimes]

Wow, actually seeing bacteria and such... that would be amazing.

The step forward was made possible by a technique called magnetic resonance force microscopy (MRFM), which relies on detecting very small magnetic forces.

umm... isn't that basically what MRI's already do? So now they're just detecting even smaller magnetic forces?