395 W. 12th Ave.
Fourth floor
Columbus, OH 43210
Phone: 614-293-8315
Fax: 614-293-6935
Background
I joined the Department of Radiology in 1989. At the time, my research centered on spectroscopic methods, with a focus on the experimental and theoretical aspects of nuclear magnetic resonance and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). I devoted considerable attention to NIH-funded spectroscopic analysis of in-vivo cardiac metabolism in the normal and failing heart, using both 13C- and 31P- NMR methods. I also focused on the development of new instrumentation for MRI. This included the design and assembly of the first torque compensated asymmetric gradient coil.
From 1995-2000, I was responsible for conceiving and assembling, at Ohio State, the world's first ultra high field clinical MRI system. This 8 Tesla/80cm MRI system was utilized to acquire many of the highest resolution images in existence. At the same time, early results with this instrument prompted a reconsideration of RF power requirements in MRI and of signal to noise. In turning my attention to these problems, I initially sought to consider NMR is a "thermal" process. In the early days of this modality, the T1 relaxation time was also known as the "thermal" relaxation time. This would lead to a detailed study of Kirchhoff's Law of Thermal Emission, a topic on which I have subsequently published extensively.
Kirchhoff's Law stands at the very heart of spectroscopic analysis, not only in medicine, but also in fields as seemingly remote as astronomy. For me, revisiting Kirchhoff's Law of Thermal Emission has resulted in questioning many established ideas in astronomy, including the origin of the microwave background and, most importantly, the nature of the sun itself. That is because the standard model of the sun, relies on the validity of Kirchhoff's Law, in order to justify a gaseous state. Conversely, if Kirchhoff's Law is not valid, then the sun cannot be a gaseous in nature. Along these lines, I have recently advanced forty lines of evidence that the sun is comprised of condensed matter.
Publications
- Robitaille P.-M.L. (2013) Forty Lines of Evidence for Condensed Matter - The Sun on Trial: Liquid Metallic Hydrogen as a Solar Building Block. Prog. Phys., v. 4, 90-142
- Robitaille P.-M.L. (2009) Kirchhoff's Law of Thermal Emission: 150 Years. Progr. Phys., 4, 3-13
- Robitaille P.-M.L. (2008) Blackbody Radiation and the Carbon Particle. Progr. Phys. 3, 36-55
- Robitaille P.-M.L. (2007) WMAP: A Radiological Analysis. Progr. Phys. 1, 3-18
- Robitaille P-M.L., Abduljalil A.M., Kangarlu A., Zhang X., Yu Y., Burgess R., Bair S., Noa P., Yang L., Zhu H., Palmer B., Jiang Z., Chakeres D.M., and Spigos D. (1998) Human Magnetic Resonance Imaging at Eight Tesla. NMR Biomed. 11, 263-265
- Robitaille P-M.L., Warner R., Jagadeesh J., Abduljalil A.M., Kangarlu A., Burgess R.E., Yu Y., Yang L., Zhu H., Jiang Z., Bailey R.E., Chung W., Somawiharja Y., Feynan P., and Rayner D. (1999) Design and Assembly of an 8 Tesla Whole Body MRI Scanner. J. Comp. Assist. Tomog. 23, 808-820
- Robitaille P-M.L., Abduljalil AM and Kangarlu A. (2000) Ultra High Resolution Imaging of the Human Head at 8 Tesla: 2K x 2K for Y2K. J Comp. Assist. Tomogr. 24, 2-7
- Abduljalil, A.M., Aletras, A.H., and Robitaille, P-M.L. (1994). Torque free asymmetric gradient coils for echo planar imaging. Mag. Reson. Med. 31, 450-453
- Robitaille, P-M.L., Rath, D., Skinner, T.E., Abduljalil, A., and Hamilin, R.L. (1993). Transaminase reaction rates, transport activities and TCA cycle analysis by post-steady state 13C-NMR. Magn.Reson. Med. 30, 262-266
- Robitaille, P-M.L., Rath, D., Abduljalil, A., O'Donnell, J.M., Jiang, Z., Zhang, H., and Hamlin, R.L. (1993). Dynamic 13C-NMR analysis of oxidative metabolism in the in-vivo myocardium. J. Biol. Chem. 268(15), 26296-26301