A flexible wireless array for human brain magnetic resonance imaging

Improving the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) has always been the development direction of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Traditional head coils have a large size to be suitable for imaging all people and have a certain distance from the imaging area, resulting in a low SNR. To address this issue, we proposed a novel flexible wireless coil array that enhanced the SNR and imaging performance, using in combination with a commercial 48-channel head coil on a 5T MRI scanner. The conductors were fabricated using custom coaxial cables with excellent electrical stability and high mechanical flexibility. This enables the wireless array to conform closely to complex head geometries while maintaining reliable functionality. Experimental results with the phantom and in-vivo studies demonstrate significant improvement in SNR and image quality after using the flexible wireless array. This finding highlights the advantages of integrating wireless technology into radio frequency coil design and demonstrates its potential as a promising approach for advancing ultra-high field MRI.