Pol Grasland-Mongrain edited Material_methods.tex  over 8 years ago

Commit id: 778d39f3eeec04cb1a206bf06dab5454661c386b

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In the experimental setup, pictured in Figure \ref{Figure1}-(B), the electrical current was induced by a TMS device using a 2x75 mm diameter coil (MagPro R100 device with C-B60 Butterfly coil, MagVenture, Farum, Danemark). The coil was placed 1 cm away from the medium, without any contact, and fixed to an independent support. The electrical current in the coil was in "monophasic" mode, i.e., a half cycle of 0.4 ms, as illustrated in Figure \ref{InducedElectricalCurrent}-(A). Alternatively, "biphasic" mode, i.e., a full sinus cycle of 0.4 ms could be used, as illustrated in Figure \ref{InducedElectricalCurrent}-(B). According to the manufacturer's specifications, at 100\% amplitude, current reached a magnitude of 149.10$^6$ A.s$^{-1}$ in the coil, leading to a peak transient magnetic field of 2 T at the surface of the coil and of 0.74 T at 20 mm in depth.  The magnetic field was induced by a 5x5x5 cm$^3$ N48 NdFeB magnet (model BY0Y0Y0, K\&J Magnetics, Pipersville, PA, USA). The magnet was placed 1 cm away from the medium, without any contact, and fixed to a second independent support. In the medium location, the magnetic field intensity ranged from 50 100  to 150 200  mT, as measured by a gaussmeter (Model GM2, AlphaLab, Salt Lake City, UT, USA). Main tested sample was a 4x8x8 cm$^3$ water-based tissue-mimicking phantom made with 5\% polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), 0.1\% graphite powder and 5\% NaCl, giving a theoretical electrical conductivity of 7.5 S.m$^{-1}$. Three freezing/thawing cycles were applied to stiffen the material \cite{fromageau2007estimation}. The graphite powder (\#282863 product, Sigma-Aldrich, Saint-Louis, MO, USA) was made of submillimeter particles, which presented a speckle pattern on ultrasound images. The sample was placed in a rigid plastic box of 2 mm thick layers with an opening on a side to introduce the ultrasound probe. The rigid box simulated a solid interface such as a skull and ensure also that any observed movement was not due to surrounding displacement of air. Alternatively, we used a similar phantom made of 5\% PVA, 0.1\% graphite powder and 2\% NaCl, giving a theoretical electrical conductivity of 3.5 S.m$^{-1}$. A biological tissue sample was also tested. This tissue was a chicken breast sample bought in local grocery of approximately 3x5x5 cm$^3$. It was degassed in a 20$^o$C saline water (0.9\% NaCl) during two hours prior to the experiment.