Yang Jinge, Choi Seongwook, Kim Chulhong
Department of Electrical Engineering, Convergence IT Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, School of Interdisciplinary Bioscience and Bioengineering, and Medical Device Innovation Center, Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH), 77 Cheongam-ro, Nam-gu, Pohang, Gyeongbuk Republic of Korea.
Biomed Eng Lett. 2021 Dec 19;12(1):19-35. doi: 10.1007/s13534-021-00214-8. eCollection 2022 Feb.
Photoacoustic computed tomography (PACT) has become a promising imaging modality from laboratory to clinical research. Of many components of PACT system, the ultrasound (US) array transducer is an essential device to simultaneously receive photoacoustic (PA) signals from several directions in a parallel manner. Many research groups and companies have developed various types of US array transducers while accounting the properties of the PA waves to achieve better image quality, deeper imaging depth, faster imaging speed, and a wider field of view. In this review, we present the implementation and application of the state-of-the-art PACT systems using several types of curved US arrays: arc-shaped, ring-shaped, and hemispherical array transducers. Furthermore, we discuss the current limitations of PACT and also potential future directions for enhancing them.
光声计算机断层扫描（PACT）已成为一种从实验室到临床研究都颇具前景的成像方式。在PACT系统的众多组件中，超声（US）阵列换能器是一种必不可少的设备，它能够以并行方式同时从多个方向接收光声（PA）信号。许多研究团队和公司在考虑PA波特性的同时，开发了各种类型的US阵列换能器，以实现更好的图像质量、更深的成像深度、更快的成像速度和更宽的视野。在这篇综述中，我们介绍了使用几种类型的弯曲US阵列（弧形、环形和半球形阵列换能器）的先进PACT系统的实现和应用。此外，我们还讨论了PACT目前的局限性以及未来改进它们的潜在方向。
