Balanced SSFP Imaging using a Biplanar MR Microscope

Andrey V. Demyanenko¹, Julian Michael Tyszka¹

Balanced steady-state free precession (bSSFP) imaging places high demands on gradient performance in terms of waveform fidelity, maximum slew rate and gradient amplitude. We present here a biplanar gradient coil designed to minimize eddy currents and allow high SNR efficiency bSSFP with repetition times of 2.5ms at isotropic spatial resolutions on the order of 60 microns. This hardware is well-suited to high resolution MR imaging of chemically-fixed tissue samples, including whole early-stage mammalian embryos, whole mouse brains and thick tissue slices.