Localized Stimulation of Nerves and Muscles by Moans of a Pair of Pulsed Magnetic Fields

A method of localized stimulation of the human cortex is proposed. The basic idea is to concentrate induced eddy currents locally in the vicinity of a target area in the cortex using a coil pair positioned outside the head. A pair of coils is positioned on the surface of the head so that time-varying magnetic fields pass through the head in opposite directions around the target area. The eddy currents induced in the target area are expected to flow together, resulting in an increased current-flow in the target area. To demonstrate the efficacy of the proposed method, spatial distributions of induced eddy currents in a cubical model were obtained by the finite element method.