Further Information:

Spin Dynamics in Solid Xenon

The aim of this project is to produce highly spin polarised solid xenon using cryogenic techniques and then to turn the solid into hyperpolarised Xe gas for use as a contrast agent in MRI. The equipment consists of a top loading dilution refrigerator which is capable of cooling the xenon to 10 millikevlin in a field of 15 tesla. Nuclear Magnetic Resonance measurements will be performed on the solid xenon to monitor the polarisation. The usual relaxation time for the spin polarisation in a solid at very low temperatures is about the lifetime of the universe! One of the main objectives of this project is to enable this process to take place in a finite time using a "relaxation switch".

The work has been funded by 2 grants, one a JREI for the equipment and the second an EPSRC award for manpower.

Publications

MRes Thesis - Rupa Jagannathan

Brute Force Polarisation of Xe-129

Adsorbed Xenon and the Production of Hyperpolarized
129Xe

NMR Spectroscopy of Adsorbed Xe-129 at high magnetic field and low temperature