Out of curiosity, what are the cost cutting changes you're making?
I've wondered why there are no MRIs using high temperature super conductors yet, it seems like such an obvious way to cut costs (as you don't need the extreme cryogenics).
I've wondered why there are no MRIs using high temperature super conductors yet, it seems like such an obvious way to cut costs (as you don't need the extreme cryogenics).
High T super conductors will be very interesting in the next decade, I think, but right now there are a few issues that I'm aware of:
1) The high T super conductors are almost all crystals, not ductile metals. This means it can be very difficult to form coils or other structures out of them.
2) High T super conductors generally can't withstand as high a magnetic field as the lower T super conductors. I'm not sure how practical a concern this is for MRI.
The benefit of High T super conductors is that you switch from using liquid helium as your cryogen to liquid nitrogen. This is a major simplification, but we're not all the way to room temp yet, unfortunately.