Abstract: A magnetic resonance data acquisition unit is operated according to an imaging protocol wherein at least one echo spacing exists following radiation of an excitation RF pulse, via an RF channel that includes an RF amplifier, and a subsequent readout of an echo. Loading of the RF amplifier is reduced by lengthening the echo spacing in the imaging protocol. One or more refocusing RF pulses are radiated with a lengthened echo spacing.

Abstract: In a method and apparatus for magnetic resonance data acquisition, data are acquired according to a single-slab three-dimensional turbo or fast spin-echo pulse sequence, wherein the inner volume selection in the phase-encoding direction takes place by radiating a pair of adiabatic RF pulses, instead of the single refocusing RF pulse that is conventional. The radiation of the adiabatic RF pulses allows a high RF pulse bandwidth to be achieved, for a given limit on the peak radio-frequency field strength. Such a high RF pulse bandwidth reduces off-resonance-related artifacts.

Abstract: In a method and apparatus for magnetic resonance data acquisition, data are acquired according to a single-slab three-dimensional turbo or fast spin-echo pulse sequence, wherein the inner volume selection in the phase-encoding direction takes place by radiating a pair of adiabatic RF pulses, instead of the single refocusing RF pulse that is conventional. The radiation of the adiabatic RF pulses allows a high RF pulse bandwidth to be achieved, for a given limit on the peak radio-frequency field strength. Such a high RF pulse bandwidth reduces off-resonance-related artifacts.

Abstract: A magnetic resonance data acquisition unit is operated according to an imaging protocol wherein at least one echo spacing exists following radiation of an excitation RF pulse, via an RF channel that includes an RF amplifier, and a subsequent readout of an echo. Loading of the RF amplifier is reduced by lengthening the echo spacing in the imaging protocol. One or more refocusing RF pulses are radiated with a lengthened echo spacing.

Abstract: In a method and an apparatus for acquiring magnetic resonance data, a region of a subject is exposed to a spin echo magnetic resonance pulse sequence that includes a refocusing radio-frequency pulse flip angle evolution that causes magnetic resonance signals to be emitted from the region with a signal evolution following each excitation radio-frequency pulse. The signal evolution is sampled to extract two or more sets of sampled data therefrom respectively with different contrast weightings of tissues in the region. The multiple sets of sampled data are made available as respective outputs in a form allowing multiple different images of the region to be generated therefrom, respectively with said different contrast weightings. For example, a spin density-weighted image and a T2-weighted image, or a T2-weighted image and a heavily T2-weighted image, thus can be generated by sampling from the same variable-flip-angle echo train.

Abstract: In a method and an apparatus for acquiring magnetic resonance data, a region of a subject is exposed to a spin echo magnetic resonance pulse sequence that includes a refocusing radio-frequency pulse flip angle evolution that causes magnetic resonance signals to be emitted from the region with a signal evolution following each excitation radio-frequency pulse. The signal evolution is sampled to extract two or more sets of sampled data therefrom respectively with different contrast weightings of tissues in the region. The multiple sets of sampled data are made available as respective outputs in a form allowing multiple different images of the region to be generated therefrom, respectively with said different contrast weightings. For example, a spin density-weighted image and a T2-weighted image, or a T2-weighted image and a heavily T2-weighted image, thus can be generated by sampling from the same variable-flip-angle echo train.

Abstract: A method and system is described for measuring the apparent diffusion coefficient of Xe129 in the lung as a means to detect and assess changes in lung-tissue structure such as those that occur in certain pulmonary diseases. The main steps of this process include: polarizing the Xe129 gas; introducing said gas into the lung; acquiring sets of Xe 129 M R signals with various diffusion sensitizations; calculating Xe 129 ADC values; and evaluating said ADC values by comparison of the values in a region of interest to those in different regions of the lung or to normative values.