The development of a nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) console is essential to carry out the scientific program for which the Series Hybrid magnet at the NHMFL was funded. The proposed console together with the new high homogeneity magnet will increase the available field for high-homogeneity NMR from 23 to 36 T and provide important scientific opportunities. For the first time, scientists will be able to obtain chemically resolved spectra of strongly broadened isotopes. These quadrupolar nuclei, which comprise most of the periodic table and which are important for catalysts, porous materials, batteries and fuel cells, are sensitive to the molecular electric field but are impractical to study by lower field NMR due to their extreme line broadening. In addition, more than 25% of all biological macromolecules contain metals. These nuclei will also be newly accessible to NMR. The quadrupolar species 17^O and 14^N are important sites of functional activity, and will be directly observable at 36 T. The console will also facilitate development of new techniques for 1H NMR analysis of solid materials, in which the resonance lines are broadened by large spin interactions. By combining very high field and very fast sample spinning, 1H solid state NMR spectroscopy promises to become a very sensitive tool with adequate spectral resolution for scientific challenges, ranging from functionalized silicate surfaces to macromolecular studies. The user facility, providing high quality spectroscopy at up to 36 T, will allow the United States to stay at the forefront of solid state magnetic resonance for the foreseeable future.
Analysis of the weak magnetic signals from hydrogen led to the revolution in medicine that we know as MRI, or Magnetic Resonance Imaging. Past developments in MRI and its first cousin nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), which uses the same signals for chemical analysis, have been significant enough to garner four Nobel prizes. And yet, of all the elements, only a handful can be observed in conventional MRI scanners and NMR spectrometers. Other elements, including most of those important to science and medicine, produce only poorly resolved signals in the magnets typically available in laboratories. The proposed NMR/MRI scanner, together with a strong new NSF-supported magnet already under construction, will greatly extend the range of elements that can be studied by NMR to include most of the periodic table. Analyzing the chemical configuration of these elements has the potential to improve many areas of life, such as the development of batteries and fuel cells, and of new catalysts. The spectrometer is essential to carry out the scientific program of the NSF-funded series hybrid magnet, a new powered research magnet that uses less energy, and has a more uniform and constant field than previous powered magnets. The innovative magnet and NMR spectrometer will become part of the Mag Lab's user program, allowing the U.S. to stay at the forefront of magnetic resonance research for the foreseeable future.
