Abstract
An ultrasonic probe was developed by using, in conjunction, optoacoustic and acousto-optic devices based on fiber optic technology. The intrinsic high frequency and wide bandwidth associated both to the opto-acoustic source and to the acousto-optic receiving element could open a way towards a “virtual biopsy” of biological tissue. A Micro-Opto-Mechanical-System (MOMS) approach is proposed to realize the broadband ultrasonic probe on micromachined silicon frames suited to be mounted on the tip of optical fibers.
Highlights
Much recent progress in clinical applications of echography demands for miniaturized and wide bandwidth ultrasonic probes
In 2003, we proposed a complete ultrasonic probe by adding a receiving element, based on fiber optic [6]
The challenge of developing complete transmitting-receiving ultrasonic transducers, based exclusively on fiber optic technology, is extremely important to define a new generation of ultrasonic probes
Summary
Much recent progress in clinical applications of echography demands for miniaturized and wide bandwidth ultrasonic probes. Our group proposed the design and realization of an ultrasonic source based on optoacoustic effect in 1996, with a metal layer over the fiber optic tip as absorbing target [2]. Other configurations have been developed based on this principle: some make use of graphite powder dispersed in polymeric materials, others require the use of nanostructured materials with gold dipped in polymer matrices [5]. This solution presents the advantage of further extending the band, but has a complicated implementation and requires the use of pulsed laser optical sources, because it exhibits a fairly narrow range of optical absorption.
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