Signal-to-Noise Ratio and Contrast-to-Noise Ratio Comparisons Between a Wireless Volume Radiofrequency Coil and a Commercially Available Wired Radiofrequency Coil

The design of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) radiofrequency (RF) coils plays a critical role in determining image quality, with signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) serving as key metrics for evaluation. This study systematically compares the imaging performance of a novel wireless RF coil against a conventional wired coil across three experimental conditions: phantom imaging, fruit imaging, and human brain imaging. Using a phantom, results revealed that the wireless coil exhibited higher SNR, lower CNR, and the images had better quality both in terms of high signal and uniformity. In fruit imaging (watermelon, banana, and pineapple), SNR differences varied by fruit type and imaging protocol, with the wired and wireless coils performing similarly and in more cases, the wireless coil significantly outperforming the wired coil than underperforming. For human brain imaging, the two coils once again performed similarly under most conditions with the wireless coil significantly improving the SNR, particularly in T2-weighted imaging. The wireless coil eliminates bulky structures, reduces costs, and simultaneously produces similar SNR or enhances SNR quality compared to wired coils which provides motivation for our industry partner to continue the development of wireless coils. Future work should further explore the wireless coil’s performance in clinical imaging scenarios, including diffusion-weighted imaging and functional MRI, to better assess its diagnostic potential.