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The University of Birmingham in the UK has developed a new sensor called the Optically Pumped Magnetometer (OPM) that can measure weak magnetic signals in the brain.
The sensor was designed by a team of scientists led by physics Dr Anna Kowalczyk of the Quantum Gases group at the School of Physics and Astronomy and the Neuronal Oscillation group at the School of Psychology.
Used in MEG laboratories, these sensors make use of polarized light to detect changes in the spin orientation of atoms when exposed to a magnetic field.
The new sensor can potentially help in understanding connectivity in the brain, as well as for detecting signs of traumatic brain injury, dementia and schizophrenia.
Unlike EEG which detects electrical signals, magnetic signals in the brain are measured using magnetoencephalography (MEG) and are easier to locate.
Distinguishing itself from commercially available sensors, the new sensor is able to distinguish magnetic signals from background magnetic noise.
Kowalczyk said: “Existing MEG sensors need to be at a constant and cool temperature and this requires a bulky helium cooling system, which means they need to be arranged in a hard helmet that doesn’t fit all sizes and shapes of the helmet. head.
“They also require a zero-magnetic field environment to pick up brain signals. Tests have shown that our autonomous sensor does not require these conditions. ”
Recently, the team from the University of Birmingham Center for Human Brain Health received partnership resource funding from sensors and timing at the UK’s Quantum Technology Hub to help further develop new OPM sensors.
A patent application for the design and use of the new sensor in medical diagnostic equipment has been filed by the University of Birmingham Enterprise.
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