MUT Array Trenches for Cross-Talk Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Micromachined ultrasonic transducers (MUTs) experience unwanted elastic compression and interfacial waves that lead to power wastage and cross-talk artifacts in medical imaging, causing static images and ghosting effects due to energy radiated outside the acoustic medium.
Innovation Solution
Incorporating trenches around the perimeter of the diaphragm in the MUT array substrate to create an impedance mismatch, disrupting cross-talk waves through attenuation, reflection, and scattering, thereby reducing unwanted energy transmission.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If MUTs are arranged in arrays for medical imaging, then imaging capability is improved, but cross-talk artifacts and power wastage increase due to unwanted elastic compression and interfacial waves
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and removes the unwanted elastic compression and interfacial waves from the system by introducing trenches that act as wave-blocking structures. These trenches are positioned between adjacent MUTs to prevent the propagation of harmful waves while allowing the desired acoustic energy to pass through to the imaging medium.
Solution Approach 2:
The trenches serve as intermediary structures between adjacent MUTs, acting as a mediator that blocks the transmission of unwanted elastic compression and interfacial waves. The trenches are filled with materials that provide acoustic impedance mismatch, thereby preventing cross-talk energy from propagating between neighboring transducer elements.
2Reliability
If MUTs are arranged in arrays for medical imaging, then imaging capability is improved, but cross-talk artifacts increase causing static images and ghosting effects
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and removes the unwanted elastic compression and interfacial waves from the system by introducing trenches that act as wave-blocking structures. These trenches are positioned between adjacent MUTs to prevent the propagation of harmful waves while allowing the desired acoustic energy to pass through to the imaging medium.
Solution Approach 2:
The trenches serve as intermediary structures between adjacent MUTs, acting as a mediator that blocks the transmission of unwanted elastic compression and interfacial waves. The trenches are filled with materials that provide acoustic impedance mismatch, thereby preventing cross-talk energy from propagating between neighboring transducer elements.
3Loss of energy
If trenches are added around diaphragm perimeters, then cross-talk and power wastage are reduced, but device complexity and manufacturing difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the substrate into regions separated by trenches around each MUT diaphragm. This segmentation creates isolated zones that prevent wave propagation between adjacent elements. The trenches are integrated into the substrate fabrication process, dividing the structure into manageable sections that can be manufactured using standard semiconductor processing techniques.
Solution Approach 2:
The trenches are strategically positioned only at critical locations where cross-talk occurs most severely, such as between adjacent MUTs. The trench depth, width, and filling material are optimized locally to provide maximum wave-blocking effectiveness while minimizing overall structural complexity and manufacturing complexity.
4Loss of energy
If trenches are added around diaphragm perimeters, then cross-talk and power wastage are reduced, but manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the substrate into regions separated by trenches around each MUT diaphragm. This segmentation creates isolated zones that prevent wave propagation between adjacent elements. The trenches are integrated into the substrate fabrication process, dividing the structure into manageable sections that can be manufactured using standard semiconductor processing techniques.
Solution Approach 2:
The trenches are strategically positioned only at critical locations where cross-talk occurs most severely, such as between adjacent MUTs. The trench depth, width, and filling material are optimized locally to provide maximum wave-blocking effectiveness while minimizing overall structural complexity and manufacturing complexity.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Significantly reduces cross-talk and power wastage by effectively attenuating interfacial and bulk waves, improving image quality by eliminating artifacts such as the 'spotlight' effect and ghost images.
Implementation Method 1
The excitation is generally created by a piezoelectric effect (for piezoelectric MUTs (pMUTs))
Implementation Method 2
or a capacitive effect (for capacitive MUTs (cMUTs))
Implementation Method 3
Incorporating trenches around the perimeter of the diaphragm in the MUT array substrate to create an impedance mismatch, disrupting cross-talk waves through attenuation, reflection, and scattering
Implementation Method 4
effectively attenuating interfacial and bulk waves, improving image quality by eliminating artifacts
Data Source
AI summary
Described are micromachined ultrasonic transducer (MUT) arrays with trenches, reducing cross-talk between MUTs to mitigate undesirable artifacts in ultrasound images, as well as methods of making the same.