IEEE Trans Ultrason Ferroelectr Freq Control. 2020 Nov;67(11):2354-2362. doi: 10.1109/TUFFC.2020.3005029. Epub 2020 Jun 29.
Endoscopic ultrasound (EUS), an interventional imaging technology, utilizes a circular array to delineate the cross-sectional morphology of internal organs through the gastrointestinal (GI) track. However, the performance of conventional EUS transducers has scope for improvement because of the ordinary piezoelectric parameters of Pb(Zr, Ti) [Formula: see text] (PZT) bulk ceramic as well as its inferior mechanical flexibility which can cause material cracks during the circular shaping process. To achieve both prominent imaging capabilities and high device reliability, a 128-element 6.8-MHz circular array transducer is developed using a Pb(Mg [Formula: see text]Nb [Formula: see text]) [Formula: see text]-PbTiO (PMN-PT) 1-3 composite with a coefficient of high electromechanical coupling ( [Formula: see text]) and good mechanical flexibility. The characterization results exhibit a large average bandwidth of 58%, a high average sensitivity of 100 mV, and a crosstalk of less than -37 dB near the center frequency. Imaging performance of the PMN-PT composite-based array transducer is evaluated by a wire phantom, an anechoic cyst phantom, and an ex-vivo swine intestine. This work demonstrates the superior performance of the crucial ultrasonic device based on an advanced PMN-PT composite material and may lead to the development of next-generation biomedical ultrasonic devices for clinical diagnosis and treatment.
内镜超声（EUS）是一种介入性成像技术，利用圆阵通过胃肠道（GI）通道描绘内部器官的横截面形态。然而，由于普通压电参数的 Pb(Zr,Ti)[Formula: see text]（PZT）块状陶瓷以及其较差的机械柔韧性，在圆形成型过程中会导致材料出现裂纹，因此常规 EUS 换能器的性能还有改进的空间。为了实现出色的成像能力和高设备可靠性，采用具有高机电耦合系数（[Formula: see text]）和良好机械柔韧性的 Pb(Mg[Formula: see text]Nb[Formula: see text])[Formula: see text]-PbTiO（PMN-PT）1-3 复合材料，开发了一种 128 元 6.8MHz 圆形阵列换能器。该换能器的特性评估结果表明，在中心频率附近，平均带宽为 58%，平均灵敏度为 100mV，串扰小于-37dB。PMN-PT 复合材料基阵列换能器的成像性能通过线阵、无声囊肿体模和离体猪肠进行了评估。这项工作展示了基于先进 PMN-PT 复合材料的关键超声设备的卓越性能，可能会推动下一代用于临床诊断和治疗的生物医学超声设备的发展。
