Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a radiological technique which makes it possible to investigate and diagnose many diseases. The absence of ionizing radiation makes MRI an ideal tool for neuroimaging, both for diagnostic purposes and for research in the field of neuroscience.

The MIND experiment set up by the INFN in Trieste, Genoa and Bari is investigating the use of advanced techniques in image analysis for the early diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease. In fact, when the disease is diagnosed early, treatments have been shown to be much more effective.

Another MRI technique is diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) which makes it possible to study the diffusion of water molecules in tissue: the main applications of DTI are human brain mapping and early diagnosis of brain diseases.