Mems-based transducers (CMUT) and integrated electronics for medical ultrasound imaging

Capacitive Micromachined Ultrasonic Transducers (CMUTs) are MEMS transducers fabricated on silicon that have reached technological maturity, representing today a valid alternative to piezoelectric transducers in medical ultrasound imaging applications, offering larger bandwidth and better thermal efficiency. The growing interest for this new technology is based in the increased compatibility with 3D electronics integration methods that allow integrating, on the same chip, the transducers and the electronics, thereby enabling the realization of high-performance and low-cost devices. This paper summarizes the research activity carried out at the Acoustoelectronics Laboratory (ACULAB) of Roma Tre University on the integration of CMUTs and analog front-end electronics in ultrasound medical imaging probes for volumetric imaging applications.