Development of 1H/23Na dual-tuned RF probe using inductive coupling for 9.4T vertical wide-bore superconducting MRI for rat’s kidney

A superconducting magnet for vertical NMR, commonly used as a high-field magnet, is effective for the MRI of X nuclides with low detection sensitivity. Even in a narrow magnetic field space, an inductively coupled RF coil with a simple structure can be used to image small animals one size larger. In this study, to visualize 23Na distribution in the kidney region of anesthetized rats, we developed 1H/23Na dual-tuned RF coils using inductive coupling with a 9.4T wide bore magnet (room temperature bore diameter 89 mm) and performed in vivo imaging.