Design of a Dynamically-Controlled Resistive Shield for a Combined PET and Superconducting MRI System for Small Animal Imaging

Geron Andre Bindseil¹, Timothy J. Scholl¹, William B. Handler¹, Chad T. Harris¹, Blaine A. Chronik¹

Combining conventional PET and MRI faces numerous technical challenges, particularly the sensitivity of photomultiplier tube-based (PMT) PET detectors to magnetic fields. The authors describe an approach to PET/MRI in which a resistive electromagnet shield is used to null the field at the PMTs of a conventional PET system in the vicinity of a superconducting MRI system. The electromagnetic characteristics of the shield coil are presented. This approach benefits from allowing the use of commercially available PET systems, which include state-of-the-art timing & energy resolution, high sensitivity, and highly optimized event processing hardware.