Low-acoustic attenuation and high-mechanical strength silicone rubber lens doped with ZnO nanopowder for medical ultrasonic array probe

Abstract

Effects of zinc oxide (ZnO) nanopowder dopant, on the acoustical and physical properties of silicone (Q) rubber have been investigated, in order to develop a low-acoustic attenuation, low sound velocity, and high-mechanical properties lens material for medical array probes. The ZnO-doped Q rubbers showed acoustic impedance (Z) = 1.29 to 1.46 × 10 6 k g ּ m -2 s -1 , acoustic attenuation = 0.54 to 0.74 d B ּ mm -1 ּ MHz -1 , and attenuation figure of merits (FOM) (attenuation × sound velocity) = 471 to 621 at 37 o C. The attenuation FOM values for the Q rubber lens material are the lowest attenuation ever reported. The performance of 7.5 MHz linear array probe using the ZnO-doped Q rubber lens showed an increase of 3.5 dB in sensitivity compared to that of conventional Q rubber lens doped with SiO 2 powder. In addition, the material showed a high tear strength and a large elongation. The excellent mechanical properties of the ZnO-doped-Q rubber lens enable higher performance during longer operation in diagnosis compared with conventional Q rubber lens for medical array probe application.

Mechanical Properties of Silicone Rubber Acoustic Lens Material Doped with Fine Zinc Oxide Powders for Ultrasonic Medical Probe

“…ZnO is also used as a vulcanization accelerator so that it enhances the mechanical properties of HTV Q rubber. Furthermore, the ZnO-doped rubber also showed a low acoustic attenuation compared with that of the conventional Q lens material with the same Z for acoustic lens applications 11).…”