Fetal bedside magnetocardiograph

The application of SQUID magnetometers in clinical fetal magnetocardiography is a new tool for investigation of electrophysiology of the fetal heart. A third order gradiometer optimized for maximum sensitivity and high signal to noise ratio is presented. The design and parameters are chosen to enable measurements of the cardiac magnetic field of the fetus. The detection coils configuration exhibit sufficient sensitivity and adequate rejection of uniform fields and field gradients of higher depth noise sources compared with a second order gradiometer used for biomagnetic measurements in an unshielded environment.