The stability of source localization in a whole-head magnetoencephalography system demonstrated by auditory evoked field measurements

Superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID), which is a very sensitive magnetic sensor, has been widely used to detect the ultra-small magnetic signals in many different territories, especially in the biomagnetic measurement. In this study, a 128-channel SQUID first-order axial gradiometer system for whole-head magnetoencephalography (MEG) measurements was setup to characterize the auditory evoked magnetic fields (AEFs). A 500 Hz monaural pure tone persisting 425 ms with the sound pressure level of 80 dB was randomly applied to the left ear of subject with the inter-stimulus interval of 1.5 ∼ 2.8 s to prevent fatigue of nerves. We demonstrated the characteristic waveforms of AEFs can be accurately recorded and analyzed. Using source localization processes, the origins of AEFs were successfully calculated to be at the auditory cortices which are brain areas known for responsive to sound stimulus. A phantom experiment also proved the good localization accuracy of the established MEG system and measurement procedures. The validated performance of the SQUID system suggests that this technique can also be employed in other brain research.