Systems and methods which employ a high temperature superconductor (HTS) receiver coil configuration for MRI analysis of small volume subjects, such as infants, are shown. Embodiments provide a HTS tape RF phase array receiver coil implementation. The foregoing HTS tape receiver coil implementation may be provided in a Helmholtz coil configuration. With such a Helmholtz coil configuration, circuitry is preferably provided to provide tuning, matching, and/or decoupling with respect to the HTS receiver coils. Embodiments implement a cryostat configuration to maintain one or more HTS receiver coils at a desired operating temperature (e.g., ≦77° K.) while providing a safe environment for a subject (e.g., infant) being imaged.
