Study of the magnetic interaction of a 4-coil array and copper shielding with a PET/MRI using the finite-element method

The effect of the shielding in a PET-MRI system was numerically estimated by calculating the RF magnetic field, B1, produced by a coil array of 4 independent elements at the resonant frequency of 171 MHz (4T for protons). The array coil is located inside a μPET camera to simultaneously acquire PET and MR images of a rat brain. Profiles showed a good uniformity despite the shielding that is interacting between the coil array and the μPET camera. These limitations are currently being dealt with the fabrication of a birdcage coil design.