Mitigation of B(1)(+) inhomogeneity for ultra-high-field magnetic resonance imaging: hybrid mode shaping with auxiliary EM potential

The notion of mode shaping based on evanescent coupling has been successfully applied in various fields of optics, such as in the dispersion engineering of optical waveguides. Here, we show that the same concept provides an opportunity for the seemingly different field of ultra-high-field MRI, addressing transmit RF magnetic field (B(1)(+)) inhomogeneity. In this work, treating the human phantom as a resonator, we employ an evanescently coupled high-index cladding layer to study the effects of the auxiliary potential on shaping the B(1)(+) field distribution inside the phantom. Controlling the strength and coupling of the auxiliary potential ultimately determining the hybridized mode, we successfully demonstrate the global 2D homogenization of axial B(1)(+) for a simplified cylindrical phantom and for a more realistic phantom of spheroidal geometry. The mode-shaping potentials with a magnetic permeability or material loss are also tested to offer additional degrees of freedom in the selection of materials as well as in the manipulation of the B(1)(+) distribution, opening up the possibility of B(1)(+) homogenization for 3D MRI scanning.