D Nightingale’s research while affiliated with University of Sussex and other places

To address the demands in healthcare and industrial settings for spatially resolved magnetic imaging, we present a modular optically pumped magnetometer (OPM) system comprising a multi-sensor array of highly sensitive quantum magnetometers. This system is designed and built to facilitate fast prototyping and testing of new measurement schemes by enabling quick reconfiguration of the self-contained laser and sensor modules as well as allowing for the construction of various array layouts with a shared light source. The modularity of this system facilitates the development of methods for managing high-density arrays for magnetic imaging. The magnetometer sensitivity and bandwidth are first characterised in both individual channel and differential gradiometer configurations before testing in a real-world magnetoencephalography environment by measuring alpha rhythms from the brain of a human participant. We demonstrate the OPM system in a first-order axial gradiometer configuration with a magnetic field gradient sensitivity of 10fT/cm/Hz at a baseline of 4.5 cm. Single-channel operation achieved a sensitivity of 65fT/Hz . Bandwidths exceeding 200Hz were achieved for two independent modules. The system’s increased temporal resolution allows for the measurement of spinal cord signals, which we demonstrate by using phantom signal trials and comparing with an existing commercial sensor.