Installation of Vacuumschmelze Shielded Room Completed at Frankfurt University Clinic for New Applications in Brain Research
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Hanau / Frankfurt - Hanau-based company VACUUMSCHMELZE (VAC) announces
the installation of a shielded room for magnetoencephalography
(MEG) applications at the University Clinic of Frankfurt's Johann-Wolfgang-
Goethe University - an impressive milestone in the history of the company.
The shielded room at the University Clinic is the one hundredth shielded
room to be designed and installed by VAC. With over 30 years' experience
in the designing and building of shielded rooms, VAC is world leader in the
industry, with a market share of around 80%. MUMETALL®, a material designed
to suppress external magnetic fields, is a VAC development and is
produced in its Hanau plant. Frankfurt University Clinic's shielded room will
be used in measuring magnetic brain activity. Applications for MEG techniques
include localizing brain areas where epileptic seizures originate or
planning complex craniotomies, e.g. for brain tumour patients. In biomagnetic
research into the magnetic fields generated by weak electrical currents
in nerves active in the heart or brain, external magnetic noise (including
geomagnetism) must be screened to the maximum possible extent.
Magnetic shielded rooms are the solution.
High Precision in Brain Research and Craniotomies
Miniscule changes in magnetic fields such as biomagnetic signals (~10-13T) are
recorded by external detectors known as SQUIDs (Superconducting QUantum
Interference Devices). In this process, the magnetic fields are first recorded by
superconducting sensor coils or coil systems and then measured by the
SQUIDs. Because the magnetic signals emitted by the brain are in the order of
only 100 femtotesla (1 fT = 10−15 T), external interference must be screened as
fully as possible. This is achieved by installing the MEG in an electromagnetically
shielded room that screens the device from low-frequency environmental
magnetic noise emitted by railway lines, elevators, cars, transformers, radio signals
or other external sources, and protects it from electromagnetic radiation.
"Thanks to VAC's experience in the field of magnetic screening and new techniques
of MEG application in neuro-scientific research and clinical medicine,
Frankfurt University Clinic now has the opportunity to establish itself as a top
international MEG centre", explains Prof. Jochen Kaiser of Frankfurt University
Clinic. "This will enable us to deepen our understanding of the functioning of the
brain, and advance research into the causes of brain disorders."
Because the brain's magnetic signals are generated by intracellular electrical
currents, MEG is a particularly effective method of recording data that document
the time courses of brain activity with high temporal resolution. Today's wholehead
MEGs use a helmet-like arrangement of around 300 magnetic field detectors.
MEG systems offer the key advantages of high-precision timing and sensitivity
to sources of low-level activity, compared to conventional methods of recording
human brain activity.
Magnetic "Clean Room"
Frankfurt University Clinic decided to construct an ultra-high-power magnetically
shielded room to pursue new goals in biomagnetic research. The shielded room
was designed by VAC and officially opened on 14 June 2006. With interior dimensions
of 4.0m x. 3.0m x 2.4m, the room's structure consists of three magnetically
soft MUMETALL® layers and an aluminium layer for electrical shielding.
The various materials screen an array of frequency ranges from ultra-low (0.01
Hz) up to 1 GHz, delivering optimum protection from magnetic noise. The shells
of MUMETALL® (a magnetically soft FeNi 80% alloy) were designed for the
highest maximum permeability.
"VACUUMSCHMELZE is a groundbreaking designer of magnetic screening techniques for a wide range of applications. VAC designed and built the first shielded room with world-record specifications for Germany's Physikalisch Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB), the national metrology institute, as early as 1980. In 2000 a second shielded room for the PTB followed, this time with 7 layers of MUMETALL® and an additional high-frequency screening layer under the control of Siemens. This world-record holding shielded room has a shielding factor in excess of 75,000, making it the most magnetically silent place in the world", explains Patrick Trost, Head of European Sales, Marketing and Communication at VACUUMSCHMELZE GmbH & Co. KG. "We are delighted that our 100th shielded room has been installed at Frankfurt University Clinic, not far from our company headquarters."
VACUUMSCHMELZE GmbH & Co. KG
VACUUMSCHMELZE (VAC), based in Hanau, designs, produces and markets advanced
magnetic materials and related products. In 1914, the first vacuum furnace laid the
foundation for today's VACUUMSCHMELZE. Industrial vacuum melting techniques for
alloys have been in operation since 1923. VAC today has over 3,000 employees in over
40 countries and annual sales of around 270 million euros, and is the holder of over 600 patents. The company is among the world's most highly innovative developers of
advanced industrial materials.
VAC's range of products comprises a broad array of advanced semi-finished products,
components, parts, modules and systems for use in a wide variety of fields and
industries spanning watch-making and medical technology, regenerative energies,
shipbuilding and telecommunications, and the automotive and aviation industries. VAC's
custom solutions are developed in close collaboration with the customer, reflecting the
company's expertise in materials and state-of-the-art production technology.
Find out more at www.vacuumschmelze.com
