# [SCI] Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR)

**Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR)** is the phenomenon by which atomic nuclei in a magnetic field absorb and re-emit electromagnetic radiation at characteristic frequencies, used for spectroscopy, chemical analysis, and medical imaging.

## Overview

Felix Bloch and Edward Purcell independently demonstrated NMR in bulk matter (1946). The resonance frequency (Larmor frequency) depends on the nuclear species and its chemical environment, making NMR exquisitely sensitive to molecular structure. Richard Ernst (1966) introduced Fourier-transform NMR, vastly increasing sensitivity. Two-dimensional NMR (Ernst, 1975) enabled protein structure determination. Paul Lauterbur and Peter Mansfield applied magnetic field gradients to create spatial images — Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI, 1973).

## Key Figures & Recognition

- **Felix Bloch** (1905–1983) & **Edward Purcell** (1912–1997): NMR. **Nobel Prize 1952**.
- **Richard Ernst** (1933–2021): FT-NMR, 2D NMR. **Nobel Prize 1991**.
- **Kurt Wüthrich** (1938–): Protein structure by NMR. **Nobel Prize 2002**.

## Seminal Papers

- Bloch, F., Hansen, W.W. & Packard, M. "The Nuclear Induction Experiment." *Phys. Rev.* 70 (1946).
- Purcell, E., Torrey, H. & Pound, R. "Resonance Absorption by Nuclear Magnetic Moments in a Solid." *Phys. Rev.* 69 (1946).

## What This Enables
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- **[TECH] MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging)** — MRI applies NMR with spatially varying magnetic field gradients to reconstruct anatomical images slice by slice.
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# Parents

* [SCI] Nuclear Physics
* [SCI] Nuclear Physics