Reproducible and Miniaturized Bazooka RF Balun Using Printed Capacitor

Motivation: The balun or cable trap circuits associated with the RF coil are favored to be miniaturized, light-weighting, and even flexible. Goal(s): We proposed a reproducible and miniaturized Bazooka balun using printed coaxial capacitors. Approach: EM simulations were performed to guide the practical fabrication. The miniaturized Bazooka balun is made of the double-layer printed circuit board, allowing mass manufacturing ability in practice. Results: The extremely thin layer in the printed capacitor (25 micrometers) provides a large capacitance of tens of pF per centimeter and allows the total length to be much shorter. Impact: This reproducible and miniaturized balun is ideal for flexible and wearable RF coil designs, enhancing patient comfort and MRI image quality in diagnosis.