An MRI imager that is 100 million times more powerful could create 3-D images of viruses.Affixed to the tip of this nano-sized silicon cantilever is a small sample of tobacco mosaic virus. When hydrogen nuclei within the sample interact with a nearby magnet, the cantilever vibrates slightly. By monitoring these vibrations via laser, researchers can construct a 3-D image of the viruses. This technique, called magnetic resonance force microscopy, is a massively scaled-down version of MRI.Magnetic resonance imaging, or MRI, is a mainstay of medicine and neuroscience research. It can noninvasively probe deep inside tissues and gives information on the presence of specific chemicals. But because the magnetic forces that it detects are so tiny, MRI isn't very sensitive: it typically reveals structures on the millimeter to submillimeter scale.
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