Compressed perovskite aqueous mixtures near their phase transitions show very high permittivities: New prospects for high-field MRI dielectric shimming.

PURPOSE Perovskites are greatly used nowadays in many technological applications because of their high permittivity, more specifically in the form of aqueous solutions, for MRI dielectric shimming. In this study, full dielectric characterizations of highly concentrated CaTiO3 /BaTiO3 water mixtures were carried out and new permittivity maxima was reached. METHODS Permittivity measurements were done on aqueous solutions from 0%v/v to dry powder. The permittivity dependence with pressure was investigated. Scanning electron microscopy images were performed on a few representative solutions. BaTiO3 pressed pads of different thicknesses, permittivities, and distances to the head were compared in a 7T MRI scanner. RESULTS Perovskite aqueous mixtures undergo a pressure-dependent phase transition in terms of permittivity, with increasing water content. A new relative permittivity maximum of 475 was achieved. Microscopic images revealed structural differences between phases. A B1+ improvement in the temporal lobe was obtained with thin, high permittivity BaTiO3 head. CONCLUSIONS This new preparation method allows improved pad geometry and placement, as a result of the high relative permittivity values achieved. This method has great significance for medical applications of MRI dielectric shimming, being easy to replicate and implement on a large scale. Magn Reson Med 79:1753-1765, 2018. © 2017 The Authors Magnetic Resonance in Medicine published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited and is not used for commercial purposes.