A Novel Fully Differential NMR Transciever

Abstract

The realization of miniaturized Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) technology has received significant attention from researchers in both industry and academia. In this paper, we take a step toward the development of a fully integrated NMR by addressing the challenge of background magnetic resonance (MR) signal cancellation. A new fully differential oscillator-based NMR transceiver is proposed. This topology can suppress the background MR signal and enhance the sensitivity of the NMR transceiver. The proposed circuit contains a LC-Tank oscillator incorporated with a variable gain amplifier (VGA). This NMR transceiver is designed at 21 MHz NMR frequency. Post-layout simulations of the integrated circuit were performed using $0.18-\mu \mathbf{m}$ CMOS technology. These results prove the functionality and applicability of the proposed circuit for NMR applications using a commercially available 0.5-Tesla magnet.