Performance Improvements to 2-D Ultrasound Arrays

描述(由申请者提供)：此计划建议使用高级 多层陶瓷封装中的图案化和对准技术 业界将使用多层PZT桩构建二维超声阵列以 增加电容，从而提高传感器的信噪比(SNR)。 传统的二维换能器阵列为医疗提供了许多优势 超声成像，但性能往往受到低电容的影响 元件和阻抗匹配性差。使用共烧多人游戏技术来 产生单独的阵元是解决阻抗失配的一个很好的方案 问题是因为电容随着层数的平方而增加 在一个元素中。据估计，三层二维阵列将使信噪比提高9% 分贝和5层阵列将获得接近14分贝的改善。制做 电气连接到精细的、三维的陶瓷结构被 直到最近才有可能。电子陶瓷的研究进展 过去5年的包装行业，Via的分辨率分别为75和251lm 冲压和精密对准分别使这一概念变得可行。 对于第一阶段的工作，我们将通过构建一个 3.5至5 MHz的多层PZT二维阵列。 建议的商业应用： 2-D阵列最直接的应用是心脏容量成像。成功 多层2-D阵列将成为当前2-D阵列技术的替代。 实时体积扫描的市场也存在于放射学和产科 缓慢的三维超声扫描的价值是有限的。

DESCRIPTION (Provided by Applicant): This proposed program uses advanced patterning and alignment technology from the multiplayer ceramic packaging industry to construct 2-D ultrasound arrays with multiplayer PZT posts to increase capacitance and, therefore, transducer signal to noise ratio (SNR). Conventional 2-D transducer arrays provide many advantages for medical ultrasound imaging, but the performance often suffers from the low capacitance elements and poor impedance matching. Use of cofired multiplayer technology to produce individual array elements is a good solution to the impedance mismatch problem because capacitance increases with the square of the number of layers in an element. It was estimated that a 3-layer 2-D array will increase SNR by 9 dB and a 5 layer array will achieve close to 14 dB improvements. Making electrical connections to fine scale, three dimensional ceramic structures was not possible until recently. The progress made in the electronic ceramic packaging industry in the past 5 years, with 75 and 25 1lm resolution for via punching and precision alignment, respectively, has made this concept feasible. For the Phase I effort, we will demonstrate the feasibility by constructing a 3.5 to 5 MHz 2-D array from multilayer PZT. PROPOSED COMMERCIAL APPLICATION: The most immediate application for 2-D arrays is cardiac volumetric imaging. Successful multiplayer 2-D arrays would be drop-in replacement for current 2-D array technology. Markets for real time volumetric scanning also exist in radiology and obstetrics where slow 3-D ultrasound scanning is of limited value.