Erwin L. Hahn Institute for MRI

Managing Director: Prof. Dr. David G. Norris

Administrative Director: Dr. Beate Fraß

The Erwin L. Hahn Institute (ELH) is a joint research institute of the University of Duisburg-Essen and Radboud University Nijmegen. The centrepiece of the Institute is a whole-body magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) system which operates at the exceptionally high static magnetic field strength of 7T. This powerful system is used jointly by the researchers of both universities working in four principal investigator (PI) groups.

The research interests of the four groups are exceedingly diverse, but they collaborate very closely in developing acquisition techniques and sharing resources. The main research areas of the Institute are:

Application of 7T imaging for clinical diagnosis.
Development of radiofrequency technology for whole body transmission. This will ultimately make it possible to use 7T MRI for imaging the human torso.
Magnetic resonance spectroscopy in the prostate.
Imaging techniques for cognitive neuroimaging.
Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) of decision making.

The Institute provides a research resource for a large number of scientists in both Duisburg-Essen and Nijmegen, with a small staff of just 15 scientists resident at the Hahn Institute. Research is currently supported by grants from the EU, DFG, Helmholtz-Gesellschaft and others. Although the Institute does not participate directly in teaching, it has hosted a number of students for their Bachelor’s and Master’s projects.