Non-Scanning Magnetic Field Imaging with Laser-Pumped Atomic Magnetometer

We present first results on the imaging of the two dimensional magnetic field distributions using a recently developed magnetic field imaging camera (MFIC). The instrument is based on laser-pumped atomic magnetometry with an alkali vapour in a buffer gas. The device provides millimetre spatial and sub-second time resolution, and allows mapping the magnetic field from circa 2 cm2 surfaces. We apply the MFIC to image magnetic field patterns of deposited superparamagnetic nanoparticles (SPIONs) and quantify the achieved sensitivity. We address the applicability of the instrument to in-vitro and in-vivo imaging of SPIONs distributions in biological tissue and small animals.