Sensitivity Of Ultrasonic Transducers Research Articles

Sound Out the Deep Colors: Photoacoustic Molecular Imaging at New Depths.

Photoacoustic tomography (PAT) has become increasingly popular for molecular imaging due to its unique optical absorption contrast, high spatial resolution, deep imaging depth, and high imaging speed. Yet, the strong optical attenuation of biological tissues has traditionally prevented PAT from penetrating more than a few centimeters and limited its application for studying deeply seated targets. A variety of PAT technologies have been developed to extend the imaging depth, including employing deep-penetrating microwaves and X-ray photons as excitation sources, delivering the light to the inside of the organ, reshaping the light wavefront to better focus into scattering medium, as well as improving the sensitivity of ultrasonic transducers. At the same time, novel optical fluence mapping algorithms and image reconstruction methods have been developed to improve the quantitative accuracy of PAT, which is crucial to recover weak molecular signals at larger depths. The development of highly-absorbing near-infrared PA molecular probes has also flourished to provide high sensitivity and specificity in studying cellular processes. This review aims to introduce the recent developments in deep PA molecular imaging, including novel imaging systems, image processing methods and molecular probes, as well as their representative biomedical applications. Existing challenges and future directions are also discussed.

Frequency Dependence of Receiving Sensitivity of Ultrasonic Transducers and Acoustic Emission Sensors.

Receiving displacement sensitivities (Rx) of ultrasonic transducers and acoustic emission (AE) sensors are evaluated using sinewave packet excitation method and compared to the corresponding data from pulse excitation method with a particular emphasis on low frequency behavior below 20 kHz, down to 10 Hz. Both methods rely on the determination of transmitter displacement characteristics using a laser interferometric method. Results obtained by two calibration methods are in good agreement, with average spectral differences below 1 dB, indicating that the two calibration methods yield identical receiving sensitivities. At low test frequencies, effects of attenuation increase substantially due to increasing sensor impedance and Rx requires correction in order to evaluate the inherent sensitivity of a sensor, or open-circuit sensitivity. This can differ by more than 20 dB from results that used common preamplifiers with ~10 kΩ input impedance, leading to apparent velocity response below 100 kHz for typical AE sensors. Damped broadband sensors and ultrasonic transducers exhibit inherent velocity response (Type 1) below their main resonance frequency. In sensors with under-damped resonance, a steep sensitivity decrease occurs showing frequency dependence of f2~f5 (Type 2), while mass-loaded sensors exhibit flat displacement response (Type 0). Such behaviors originate from sensor characteristics that can best be described by the damped harmonic oscillator model. This model accounts for the three typical behaviors. At low frequencies, typically below 1 kHz, receiving sensitivity exhibits another Type 0 behavior of frequency independent Rx. Seven of 12 sensors showed this flat region, while three more appear to approach the Type 0 region. This appears to originate from the quasi-static piezoelectric response of a sensing element. In using impulse method, a minimum pulse duration is necessary to obtain spectral fidelity at low frequencies and an approximate rule is given. Various factors for sensitivity improvement are also discussed.

Measurement methods of ultrasonic transducer sensitivity

Sensitivity is an important parameter to describe the electro-acoustic energy conversion efficiency of ultrasonic transducer. In this paper, the definition of sensitivity and reciprocity of ultrasonic transducer is studied. The frequency response function of a transducer is the spectrum of its sensitivity, which reflects the response sensitivity of the transducer for input signals at different frequencies. Four common methods which are used to measure the disc-vibrator transducer sensitivity are discussed in current investigation. The reciprocitymethod and the pulse-echo method are based on the reciprocity of the transducer. In the laser vibrometer method measurement, the normal velocity on the transducer radiating surface is directly measured by a laser vibrometer. In the measurement process of the hydrophone method, a calibrated hydrophone is used to measure the transmitted field. The validity of these methods is checked by experimental test. All of the four methods described are sufficiently accurate for transducer sensitivity measurement, while each method has its advantages and limitations. In practical applications, the appropriate method to measure transducer sensitivity should be selected based on actual conditions.

Crossed SMPS MOSFET-based protection circuit for high frequency ultrasound transceivers and transducers.

BackgroundThe ultrasonic transducer is one of the core components of ultrasound systems, and the transducer’s sensitivity is significantly related the loss of electronic components such as the transmitter, receiver, and protection circuit. In an ultrasonic device, protection circuits are commonly used to isolate the electrical noise between an ultrasound transmitter and transducer and to minimize unwanted discharged pulses in order to protect the ultrasound receiver. However, the performance of the protection circuit and transceiver obviously degrade as the operating frequency or voltage increases. We therefore developed a crossed SMPS (Switching Mode Power Supply) MOSFET-based protection circuit in order to maximize the sensitivity of high frequency transducers in ultrasound systems.The high frequency pulse signals need to trigger the transducer, and high frequency pulse signals must be received by the transducer. We therefore selected the SMPS MOSFET, which is the main component of the protection circuit, to minimize the loss in high frequency operation. The crossed configuration of the protection circuit can drive balanced bipolar high voltage signals from the pulser and transfer the balanced low voltage echo signals from the transducer.MethodsThe equivalent circuit models of the SMPS MOSFET-based protection circuit are shown in order to select the proper device components. The schematic diagram and operation mechanism of the protection circuit is provided to show how the protection circuit is constructed. The P-Spice circuit simulation was also performed in order to estimate the performance of the crossed MOSFET-based protection circuit.ResultsWe compared the performance of our crossed SMPS MOSFET-based protection circuit with a commercial diode-based protection circuit. At 60 MHz, our expander and limiter circuits have lower insertion loss than the commercial diode-based circuits. The pulse-echo test is typical method to evaluate the sensitivity of ultrasonic transducers. Therefore, we performed a pulse-echo test using a single element transducer in order to utilize the crossed SMPS MOSFET-based protection circuit in an ultrasound system.ConclusionsThe SMPS-based protection circuit could be a viable alternative that provides better sensitivity, especially for high frequency ultrasound applications.

Determination of an ultrasonic transducer's sensitivity and impedance in a pulse-echo setup

The role that an ultrasonic piezoelectric transducer plays in an ultrasonic measurement system can be described in terms of the transducer's input electrical impedance and its sensitivity. Here, a new model-based approach is proposed to determine both the transducer impedance and sensitivity in a pulse-echo setup. This new method is much simpler to apply than previous "self-reciprocity" calibration methods for determining sensitivity and generalizes those methods. It is demonstrated that sensitivities obtained with this new method agree well with the sensitivities obtained by a three-transducer method commonly used in calibration studies. It is demonstrated that at the megahertz frequencies at which ultrasonic transducers operate it is important to compensate for cabling effects in these measurements. The influence of the pulser/receiver settings on the results obtained also will be discussed.

Ultrasonic Transducer Sensitivity and Model-Based Transducer Characterization

It is shown that the role that an ultrasonic piezoelectric transducer plays in both generating and receiving ultrasound in an ultrasonic nondestructive evaluation (NDE) measurement system can be completely described in terms of the transducer's electrical impedance and open-circuit, blocked force receiving sensitivity. Furthermore, it is shown that both of these quantities can be obtained experimentally via a model-based approach and purely electrical measurements. The measurement of sensitivity uses a method originally developed for lower-frequency acoustic transducers. However, it is shown that at the higher frequencies found in ultrasonic NDE applications electrical cabling effects play an important role and must be compensated for in determining the transducer sensitivity. Examples of experimental measurement results using these new approaches are given.

Ultrasonic Transducer Sensitivity and Model-Based Transducer Characterization

It is shown that the role that an ultrasonic piezoelectric transducer plays in both generating and receiving ultrasound in an ultrasonic nondestructive evaluation (NDE) measurement system can be completely described in terms of the transducer's electrical impedance and open-circuit, blocked force receiving sensitivity. Furthermore, it is shown that both of these quantities can be obtained experimentally via a model-based approach and purely electrical measurements. The measurement of sensitivity uses a method originally developed for lower-frequency acoustic transducers. However, it is shown that at the higher frequencies found in ultrasonic NDE applications electrical cabling effects play an important role and must be compensated for in determining the transducer sensitivity. Examples of experimental measurement results using these new approaches are given.

Ultrasonic Transducer Sensitivity and Model-Based Transducer Characterization

Ultrasonic Transducer Sensitivity and Model-Based Transducer Characterization

Micromachining for improvement of integrated ultrasonic transducer sensitivity

A micromachined diaphragm structure for integrated ultrasonic transducers is discussed. The micromachining significantly reduces a large parasitic capacitance, resulting in improved sensitivity compared with identical transducers on solid substrates. For the particular geometry tested, sensitivity improved 8.9 dB; this result matches a prediction of 10.9 dB, based on a simple model, reasonably well. This level of improvement is considered significant for the applications under consideration (medical imaging and nondestructive evaluation).< <ETX xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">&gt;</ETX>