VTT develops a simple but extremely sensitive magnetometer

Innovative magnetometer for applications such as medical imaging

2014-11-05

(Press-News.org) VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland has developed an innovative magnetometer that can replace conventional technology in applications such as neuroimaging, mineral exploration and molecular diagnostics. Its manufacturing costs are between 70 and 80 per cent lower than those of traditional technology, and the device is not as sensitive to external magnetic fields as its predecessors. The design of the magnetometer also makes it easier to integrate into measuring systems. Magnetometers are sensors that measure magnetic fields or changes in magnetic fields. The kinetic inductance magnetometer developed by VTT makes use of the dependence of superconductors' electrical properties on magnetic fields. This has allowed research scientists to develop an innovative sensor element which is considerably more simplistic than conventional SQUID sensors. The new magnetometer is based on a single patterned thin film. It can be fabricated in a single-phase process unlike SQUID sensors, which require a layered structure and a multi-phase fabrication process. The manufacturing costs of VTT's new magnetometer are estimated to be between 70 and 80 per cent lower than those of a corresponding SQUID sensor. It is also less sensitive to external disturbances such as the earth's magnetic field or electrical systems than its predecessors. This property will be useful in the development of new medical imaging techniques, such as magnetic resonance imaging based on ultra-low magnetic fields where the measuring fields can be commensurate with the earth's magnetic field. Highly sensitive magnetometers are needed in medicine, for example, to detect minuscule changes in magnetic fields caused by nerve signals. In the context of neuroimaging this technique is called magnetoencephalography (MEG), and it can be used to locate pathological activity in patients with epilepsy who require surgical treatment, to diagnose autism or to map brain activity more generally. Magnetometers are also used in the mining industry for mineral exploration, in industrial quality control and in certain security applications. VTT's innovative magnetometer is expected to hit the market in a few years' time

INFORMATION:

. A scientific article on the subject has been published in the esteemed Nature Communications journal: http://www.nature.com/ncomms/2014/140910/ncomms5872/full/ncomms5872.html Further information: VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland
Juha Hassel, Senior Scientist
Tel. +358 20 722 6771
juha.hassel@vtt.fi Further information on VTT: Paula Bergqvist
Specialist, external communications
+358 20 722 5161
paula.bergqvist@vtt.fi
http://www.vtt.fi VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland VTT is a leading multitechnological applied research organization in Northern Europe. VTT creates new technology and science-based innovations in co-operation with domestic and foreign partners. Every third Finnish technology innovation contains VTT expertise. VTT's turnover is EUR 310 million and its personnel totals 2,900.

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Could non-gluten proteins play a role in celiac disease?

2014-11-05

Although gluten-free foods are trendy among the health-conscious, they are necessary for those with celiac disease. But gluten, the primary trigger for health problems in these patients, may not be the only culprit. Scientists are reporting in ACS' Journal of Proteome Research that people with the disease also have reactions to non-gluten wheat proteins. The results could help scientists better understand how the disease works and could have implications for how to treat it. Armin Alaedini, Susan B. Altenbach and colleagues point out that celiac disease symptoms are triggered ...

X-ray vision of photosynthesis

2014-11-05

Photosynthesis is one of the most important processes in nature. The complex method by which all green plants harvest sunlight and thereby produce the oxygen in our air is still not fully understood. Researchers have used DESY's X-ray light source PETRA III to investigate a photosynthesis subsystem in a near-natural state. According to the scientists led by Privatdozentin Dr. Athina Zouni from the Humboldt University (HU) Berlin, X-ray diffraction experiments on the so-called photosystem II revealed structures which were yet unknown. The results are published in the scientific ...

Breaking down BPA and similar pollutants with sunlight, nanoparticles and graphene

2014-11-05

Many pollutants with the potential to meddle with hormones — with bisphenol A (BPA) as a prime example — are already common in the environment. In an effort to clean up these pollutants found in the soil and waterways, scientists are now reporting a novel way to break them down by recruiting help from nanoparticles and light. The study appears in the journal ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces. Nikhil R. Jana and Susanta Kumar Bhunia explain that the class of pollutants known as endocrine disruptors has been shown to either mimic or block hormones in animals, ...

Back to basics

2014-11-05

This news release is available in Japanese. In an article published in Frontiers in Computational Neuroscience by Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University's Professor Robert Sinclair, he suggests that there still is a place in science in modern times for the interpretation of results using rational numbers or simple ratios. In a time where supercomputers dominate scientific analysis, Prof. Sinclair argues that there is not enough attention being paid to the basic approaches to science of the past, which were able to profoundly illuminate our ...

Analysing heat waves -- New index allows predicting their magnitude

2014-11-05

JRC scientists have developed a new index to measure the magnitude of heat waves, in cooperation with colleagues from five research organisations. According to the index projections, under the worst climate scenario of temperature rise nearing 4.8⁰C, extreme heat waves will become the norm by the end of the century. Heat waves like the one that hit Russia in summer 2010, the strongest on record in recent decades, will occur as often as every two years in southern Europe, North and South America, Africa and Indonesia. The Heat Wave Magnitude Index is the first to ...

Powerful imaging for point-of-care diagnostics

2014-11-05

WASHINGTON, Nov. 5, 2014—A new handheld probe developed by a team of university and industry researchers in the Netherlands and France could give doctors powerful new imaging capabilities right in the palms of their hands. The imaging system, which is described in a paper published in The Optical Society's (OSA) open-access journal Optics Express, shrinks a technology that once filled a whole lab bench down to a computer screen and a small probe about the size of a stapler. The new device combines two imaging modalities: ultrasound and photoacoustics. Ultrasound ...

Toward eliminating 'sick-building syndrome' with low-cost air purifiers

2014-11-05

If you're inside, chances are you're breathing in low levels of indoor air pollution, a mix of volatile organic compounds and other gaseous substances that can accumulate in buildings and potentially make you sick. An article in Chemical & Engineering News (C&EN), the weekly newsmagazine of the American Chemical Society, describes the latest in air-cleaning technology, including one approach based on a filter for the International Space Station. Mitch Jacoby, a senior correspondent with C&EN, writes that in recent years, scientists have been gaining a better understanding ...

Why women buy magazines that promote impossible body images

2014-11-05

COLUMBUS, Ohio – A new study reveals the secret of how some fashion and beauty magazines continue to attract devoted audiences, even though they glamorize super-thin models that would seem to taunt normal-sized women. The research suggests that some readers, rather than comparing themselves unhappily with the thin models, may derive "thinspiration": the belief that they can make themselves look just as attractive as the models they see in these magazines. But this is not any kind of positive inspiration, said Silvia Knobloch-Westerwick, author of the study and ...

Study gives insight into breast cancer recurrence

2014-11-05

Around 5,000 cases of DCIS, a condition where cancerous cells are contained within the milk ducts of the breast, are diagnosed each year in the UK, with two thirds diagnosed through breast screening. If left untreated, up to half of DCIS cases could progress into invasive breast cancer, but it is not possible to say which ones, so all women are offered treatment. This usually involves breast-conserving surgery (lumpectomy) and, to reduce the risk of the cancer returning, radiotherapy to kill any remaining cancer cells. However, even with treatment up to one in five ...

Synthetic fish measures wild ride through dams

2014-11-05

RICHLAND, Wash. – In the Pacific Northwest, young salmon must dodge predatory birds, sea lions and more in their perilous trek toward the ocean. Hydroelectric dams don't make the trip any easier, with their manmade currents sweeping fish past swirling turbines and other obstacles. Despite these challenges, most juvenile salmon survive this journey every year. Now, a synthetic fish is helping existing hydroelectric dams and new, smaller hydro facilities become more fish-friendly. The latest version of the Sensor Fish – a small tubular device filled with sensors ...

Offering self-collection kits in routine GP appointments could prevent 1,000 women a year from developing cervical cancer

European study offers clearer picture of childhood brain tumor survival

The Lancet: Three in five liver cancer cases due to preventable risk factors; obesity-linked cases on the rise, new analysis suggest

White veteran high users of online portal generate and exchange more messages than certain patient minorities in the Veterans Health Administration

Study finds veterans experiencing homelessness who gain housing are more likely to get colorectal and breast cancer screenings

[Press-News.org] VTT develops a simple but extremely sensitive magnetometer
Innovative magnetometer for applications such as medical imaging

VTT develops a simple but extremely sensitive magnetometer

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES: