Inductive tuning with a sliding band capacitor in a low temperature nuclear magnetic resonance probe and methods of use

Abstract

In various embodiments of the invention, a cooled-NMR probe can utilize a non-tapered sliding band capacitor which can be moved relative to the inner conducting skirt of a parent coil to adjust the inductance of the parent coil and thereby the frequency of the parent coil to allow the parent coil to detect the resonance of at a nucleus without requiring leads between the parent coil and a lock coil. The cooled-NMR probe can be provided without the disadvantages of prior art cooled-NMR probes. In an embodiment of the invention, the sliding band capacitor comprises a diamagnetic insulator with a first volume magnetic susceptibility, at least one paramagnetic metal with a second volume magnetic susceptibility and at least one diamagnetic metal with a third volume magnetic susceptibility, where the sum of the first volume magnetic susceptibility, the second volume magnetic susceptibility and the third volume magnetic susceptibility is approximately zero.