Faculty Bibliography

Optimal control theory is applied for designing pulse sequences to optimally excite a spin-3/2 system with residual quadrupolar coupling in the presence of quadrupolar relaxation. A homogeneous form of the master equation is constructed to simulate the dynamics of the spin system, and a general optimization procedure with a homogeneous form of the equation of motion is described. The optimized pulses are tested with (23)Na NMR, and their performance is compared with that of pulses optimized in the absence of relaxation

A simple pulse sequence, derived from the shaped pulse optimally exciting the central transition of a spin 3/2, can be used to selectively detect ordered sodium with a given quadrupolar coupling. The pulse sequence consists of two pulses with opposite phases and separated by a delay, called a quadrupolar jump-and-return (QJR) sequence. This QJR sequence is tested with a phantom made of sodium ions in bacteriophage and in aqueous solution and its feasibility for contrast modification based on the quadrupolar coupling is demonstrated

A scheme for projecting an arbitrary quantum state on eigenstates of average Hamiltonian is described. As an experimental example, projection on entangled Bell states, which are eigenstates of specially constructed average Hamiltonian, is demonstrated for a system of two dipolar-coupled nuclear spins. The results of a direct and time-reversed evolution are added to average out the coherences between different eigenstates and accomplish the projection.

Optimal control theory is applied for enhancing the intensity of the central peak of a spin 3/2 signal in the presence of a residual quadrupolar coupling. While a maximum enhancement is always possible in the regime omega(rf) << omega(Q) via the use of modulated and shaped pulses, the intermediate rf-power regime omega(rf)-omega(Q) does not admit simple solutions based on intuition. In this work we present optimized shaped pulses that have been derived using an optimization algorithm based on optimal control and test these with (23)Na NMR in this regime. In addition to enhancing the intensity of the central transition signal, the satellite peaks can be effectively suppressed, which is a useful feature for the implementation in (23)Na imaging sequences

Using a spin-temperature approach, we describe a scheme of adiabatic cross polarization, based on demagnetization/remagnetization, when the Zeeman order of abundant nuclei in the laboratory frame is first adiabatically converted into the dipolar order, and then, into the Zeeman order of rare nuclei. The scheme, implemented with two low-power frequency-sweeping pulses, is very efficient for static samples and can significantly increase polarization of rare nuclei, compared to the conventional Hartmann-Hahn cross polarization. The experimental examples are presented for a solid, liquid crystal, and small molecules in a liquid-crystalline solvent.

Today, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) is among the most efficient tools in structural studies. Measurement of interatomic distances is the most common way of determining high-resolution structures of molecules using NMR techniques. In this article, we describe NMR techniques for static powder samples, based on a two-dimensional single-echo scheme, enhanced with adiabatic cross-polarization. They can significantly increase the accuracy of measuring internuclear distances and turn NMR into a high-precision crystallographic technique, complementing the X-ray, and neutron-scattering methods. Experimental examples are presented for intramolecular C-N and C-C distances in alpha-crystalline form of glycine. (c) 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

The problem of spontaneous emission is studied by a direct computer simulation of the dynamics of a combined system: atom + radiation field. The parameters of the discrete finite model, including up to 20k field oscillators, have been optimized by a comparison with the exact solution for the case when the oscillators have equidistant frequencies and equal coupling constants. Simulation of the effect of a multi-pulse sequence of phase kicks and emission by a pair of atoms shows that both the frequency and the linewidth of the emitted spectrum could be controlled.

In a sample of children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), a voxel based investigation of regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) during resting state was conducted to identify functional differences between non-responders to methylphenidate (MPH) and responders. Thirty-four children with ADHD were examined by technetium-99m-hexamethylporphylenamine oxime (HMPAO) SPECT. According to clinical response after 8 weeks of treatment with MPH, they were classified as non-responders to MPH and responders. Using SPM analysis, we compared the SPECT images of non-responders to MPH with those of responders. Non-responders to MPH had higher rCBF in the left anterior cingulate cortex, the left claustrum, the right anterior cingulate cortex, and the right putamen relative to responders. In addition, lower rCBF was found in the right superior parietal lobule in non-responders to MPH relative to responders. Further stepwise discriminant analysis revealed that 88.2% could be correctly classified as either non-responders to MPH or responders when considering the extracted rCBF values in the left anterior cingulate cortex, the left claustrum, and the right superior parietal lobule. The current findings suggest that non-responders to MPH may have different patterns of rCBF in brain regions, which have been known as a part of frontal-striatal circuitry and posterior attentional system, respectively.

We present a constant-time modification of a single-echo 2D technique for measuring the constants of spin-spin interaction between heteronuclei in static powder samples. Compared to the sequence with variable echo time, the new scheme provides higher resolution. Another important improvement is a possibility to eliminate the central peak from a natural-abundance matrix. The experimental results are presented for glycine-[13Calpha, 15N] and glycine-[13C', 15N].

Clusters of dipolar-coupled nuclear spins are excellent model systems for implementing various quantum experiments. The presented examples demonstrate recent techniques of coherent control for spin systems, as well as quantum dynamic schemes, like amplified quantum detection and measurement, state purification, adiabatic transfer of coherences, or projective measurement with NMR. (C) 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.