Microstrip Loop Array (MLA) for Parallel Imaging

Abstract

The microstrip loop array (MLA), an improved version of planar strip array, is proposed which take advantage of loop geometry. Without much loss of the well-decoupling benefit of strip line arrays, the proposed microstrip loop arrays have well-localized sensitivity profiles which are more suitable for parallel imaging. Simulation and experiment results show that microstrip loop coils have sensitivity profiles like conventional loop coils, while the mutual coupling is 10-20dB less at same distances. A sensitivity-encoded cardiac imaging was performed to demonstrate the suitability of MLA for parallel imaging.