Inline Transmitter/Receiver System without Direct Receiving of Transmitted Signals

摘要

It is important to obtain finer images in ultrasound imaging, especially in intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) imaging. We have developed an inline transmitter/receiver system using tissue harmonic imaging (THI) and a pulse compression technique (PCT) to obtain images with a high resolution and a high signai-to-noise ratio. This system consists of a Pb(Zn_(1/3)Nb_(2/3))O_3-PbTiO_3 single crystal (PZN-PT) layer, a poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) film as an echo receiver on the transmission side of the PZN-PT layer, and another PVDF film as a reference receiver on the reverse side of the PZN-PT layer. In this system, a transmitted chirp signal from the PZN-PT layer, passing through both PVDF films, is propagated to both sides of the PZN-PT layer. Although in previous studies we confirmed the usefulness of the system, we did not consider the effect of echo signals received by the reference PVDF film. Considering the actual use of IVUS, we need to prevent echo signals from the reverse side of the transmission from being received by the reference PVDF film. In this study, using a finite element method (FEM) simulator, we propose and evaluate some methods that can remove undesirable echo signals, and investigate the entire system.