The Cryogenics of a Thermosiphon-Cooled HTS MRI Magnet—Assembly and Component Testing

Abstract

The team at GE Global Research presents cryo assembly and component test results of a high-temperature superconducting (HTS) limb size magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner using Sumitomo's DI-BSCCO tape conductor, under an NIH research grant. The goal is to investigate the thermosiphon behavior for different MRI operating modes, validating the cryogenic robustness of this cooling approach and its performance limits. The magnet is indirectly cooled using cooling tubes with liquid neon filling and a single-stage cryocooler for reliquefying.