The history of MR research at Lund University (LU) goes back to the beginning of the 1980s, when Sweden's first experimental MR imaging (MRI) unit was constructed by a group led by professor Bertil Persson at the Department of Radiation Physics.

The prototype 0.07 T MRI unit at Lund University Hospital 1983-1984 (left) and a spin-echo image of a rat abdomen after administration of microspheres (15 mg magnetite/kg b.w.) for liver visualisation (Olsson M et al., MRI 4 (1986): 437-440).  

Skåne University Hospital in Lund (SUS, Lund) received its first clinical MRI unit, a 0.3 T FONAR system, in 1986. In 1994, the MR division at the Department of Radiology was built in close proximity to the main hospital building. This department started up with one 1.5 T system, which was followed by a 1.0 T system in 1996. In February 2002, the first 3 T MRI scanner (Siemens Magnetom Allegra) in Scandinavia was installed at the Department of Neuroradiology with generous support from the Knut and Alice Wallenberg foundation. A very recent and significant milestone was the installation of Sweden´s first ultra-high field MRI system for human use, a 7T Philips AS system in late 2015, with support from the Swedish Research Council, Lund University and Region Skåne.

For a more comprehensive overview of the presently available equipment for the MR Physics group, see “equipment”.