Timothy Chupp
Physics, Applied Physics and Biomedical Engineering, University of Michigan,
Ann Arbor
NMR and MRI with Laser Polarized Noble Gases:
What's New
Noble gas species with nuclear polarization enhanced by laser optical
pumping have been widely applied in precision NMR experiments.
Polarizations of 10% or more,
long polarization relaxation time constants, and the ability to
transport polarized 3-He and 129-Xe have made a number of new
applications possible. One application makes use of nuclear spins as
quantum bits that could be part of a quantum processor. Biomedical
applications include MRI and studies of complex biomolecules. I'll
describe some of these recent applications and emphasize the joys and
challenges of interdisciplinary research.