Researchers Work to Develop NMR Device that Works without Using Magnets

Although it sounds crazy, two groups of scientists at Berkeley Lab and UC Berkeley have shown that chemical analysis with nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) can be performed without using any magnets whatsoever. NMR is essentially the same thing as MRI—the primary distinction being that it is used to study materials instead of human tissue.

The research is the brainchild of UC Berkeley physics professor Dmitry Budker and Berkeley chemistry professor Alex Pine. Research groups led by the two professors have progressively extended the use of NMR by eliminating the use of magnetic fields at various stages of NMR measurements. Now, they have succeeding in doing away with external magnetic fields entirely.

Budker acknowledges that using low- or zero-field NMR has a number of drawbacks: small polarization, low detection efficiency, and no chemical-shift signature. But, by doing away with the large, costly magnets used in conventional NMR and MRI setups, the technique could be made portable and less expensive. The researchers speculate that the breakthrough could lead to devices used for portable diagnosis—perhaps in locations that are far removed from well-equipped hospitals and clinics.

More information on the NMR research (including an explanation for how the magnet-less tecnique works) is available from Berekely Lab.