Capacitive micromachined ultrasonic transducers (CMUTs) bring the fabrication technology of standard integrated circuits into the field of ultrasound medical imaging. This unique property, combined with the inherent advantages of CMUTs in terms of increased bandwidth and suitability for new imaging modalities and high frequency applications, have indicated these devices as new generation arrays for acoustic imaging. The advances in microfabrication have made possible to fabricate, in few years, silicon-based electrostatic transducers competing in performance with the piezoelectric transducers. This paper summarizes the fabrication, design, modeling, and characterization of ID CMUT linear arrays for medical imaging, established in our laboratories during the past 3 years. Although the viability of our CMUT technology for applications in diagnostic echographic imaging is demonstrated, the whole process from silicon die to final probe is not fully mature yet for successful practical applications. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Caronti, A., Caliano, G., Carotenuto, R., Savoia, A.S., Pappalardo, M., Cianci, E., et al. (2006). Capacitive micromachined ultrasonic transducer (CMUT) arrays for medical imaging. MICROELECTRONICS JOURNAL, 37(8), 770-777 [10.1016/j.mejo.2005.10.012].
Capacitive micromachined ultrasonic transducer (CMUT) arrays for medical imaging
CALIANO, Giosue';SAVOIA, ALESSANDRO STUART;
2006-01-01
Abstract
Capacitive micromachined ultrasonic transducers (CMUTs) bring the fabrication technology of standard integrated circuits into the field of ultrasound medical imaging. This unique property, combined with the inherent advantages of CMUTs in terms of increased bandwidth and suitability for new imaging modalities and high frequency applications, have indicated these devices as new generation arrays for acoustic imaging. The advances in microfabrication have made possible to fabricate, in few years, silicon-based electrostatic transducers competing in performance with the piezoelectric transducers. This paper summarizes the fabrication, design, modeling, and characterization of ID CMUT linear arrays for medical imaging, established in our laboratories during the past 3 years. Although the viability of our CMUT technology for applications in diagnostic echographic imaging is demonstrated, the whole process from silicon die to final probe is not fully mature yet for successful practical applications. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
