A novel hardware design and preliminary experimental results for photoacoustic imaging are reported in this paper. This imaging system makes use of an infrared-transparent capacitive micromachined ultrasonic transducer (CMUT) chip for ultrasound reception and illuminates the image target through the CMUT array. The cascaded arrangement between the light source and transducer array allows for a more compact imager head and results in more uniform illumination. Taking advantage of the low optical absorption coefficient of silicon in the near infrared spectrum as well as the broad acoustic bandwidth that CMUTs provide, an infrared-transparent CMUT array has been developed for ultrasound reception. The center frequency of the polysilicon-membrane CMUT devices used in this photoacoustic system is 3.5 MHz, with a fractional bandwidth of 118% in reception mode. The silicon substrate of the CMUT array has been thinned to 100 μm and an antireflection dielectric layer is coated on the back side to improve the infrared-transmission rate. Initial results show that the transmission rate of a 1.06-μm Nd:Yag laser through this CMUT chip is 12%. This transmission rate can be improved if the thickness of silicon substrate and the thin-film dielectrics in the CMUT structure are properly tailored. Imaging of a metal wire phantom using this cascaded photoacoustic imager is demonstrated.

This paper describes volumetric-flow velocity measurement using an implantable capacitive micromachined ultrasonic transducer (CMUT) array. The array is comprised of multiple-concentric CMUT rings for ultrasound transmission and an outmost annular CMUT array for ultrasound reception. Microelectromechanical-system (MEMS) fabrication technology allows reception CMUT on this flowmeter to be implemented with a different membrane thickness and gap height than that of transmission CMUTs, optimizing the performance of these two different kinds of devices. The silicon substrate of this 2-mm-diameter CMUT ring array was bulk micromachined to approximately 80 to 100 μm thick, minimizing tissue disruption. The blood-flow velocity was detected using pulse ultrasound Doppler by comparing the demodulated echo ultrasound with the incident ultrasound. The demodulated ultrasound signal was sampled by a pulse delayed in time domain from the transmitted burst, which corresponds to detecting the signal at a specific distance. The flow tube/vessel diameter was detected through the time-flight delay difference from near and far wall reflections, which was measured from the ultrasound pulse echo. The angle between the ultrasound beam and the flow was found by using the cross-correlation from consecutive ultrasound echoes. Artificial blood flowing through three different polymer tubes was experimented with, while keeping the same volumetric flow rate. The discrepancy in flow measurement results between this CMUT meter and a calibrated laser Doppler flowmeter is less than 5%.

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This paper discusses the numerical simulation on the drop formation process for the design of a MEMS diaphragm drop ejector, known as MEMSJet. The fluid-structure interaction between the pressure of the fluid and the motion of the actuator diaphragm is addressed and this problem is successfully solved in a 2D axisymmetric domain through linking Flow3D with our own developed user programs. This capability is then used to simulate the jetting performance and guide the design of the MEMSJet.

This paper reviews the minimally invasive capacitive micromachined ultrasonic transducer (CMUT) arrays for medical diagnosis and therapy. While piezoelectric transducers dominate today's medical ultrasound market, the capacitive micromachined ultrasonic transducer has recently emerged as a promising alternative which delivers a comparable device performance to its piezoelectric counterparts, is compatible with front-end circuit integration, allows high-density imager integration and is relative easy in miniaturization. Utilizing MEMS technology, the substrate of CMUT arrays can be micromachined into miniature platforms with various geometrical shapes, which include needles, three-dimensional prisms, as well as other flexible-substrate configurations. These arrays are useful for reaching deep inside the tissue or an organ with a minimally invasive approach. Due to the close proximity of the transducers to the target organ/tissue, a higher resolution/accuracy of diagnostic information can be achieved. In addition to pulse-echo and photoacoustic imaging, high-power CMUT devices capable of delivering ultrasounds with a pressure greater than 1.0 MPa have been monolithically integrated with imager CMUTs for image-guided therapy (IGT). Such miniature devices would facilitate diagnostic and therapy interventions not possible with conventional piezoelectric transducers.