声波测井压电换能器多频点阻抗匹配技术研究

针对声波测井压电换能器的多频点阻抗匹配技术展开研究,首先采用多模态等效电路精确描述了换能器的导纳特性;然后通过分析多模态阻抗匹配理论,设计电感-电容复合阻抗匹配网络,并结合换能器等效电路进行参数优化和电路仿真。实验表明,相比于换能器没有阻抗匹配的测试结果,该阻抗匹配技术可大幅提高换能器在谐振频率附近多个频率处的有功功率,频带内的有功功率平均提高了30倍,从而改善换能器的激励带宽和激励效率,提高测井仪器的适应性、探测深度和分辨率。     

Piezoceramics for high-frequency (20 to 100 MHz) single-elementimaging transducers

The performance of transducers operating at high frequencies is greatly influenced by the properties of the piezoelectric materials used in their fabrication. Selection of an appropriate material for a transducer is based on many factors, including material properties, transducer area, and operating frequency. The properties of a number of piezoceramic materials have been experimentally determined by measuring the electrical impedance of air-loaded resonators whose thickness corresponds to resonance frequencies from 10 to 100 MHz. Materials measured include commercially available compositions of lead zirconate titanate (PZT) with relatively high dielectric constants and a modified lead titanate (PT) composition with a much lower dielectric constant. In addition, materials which have been designed or modified to result in improved properties at high frequencies are studied. Conclusions concerning the influence of the microstructure and composition on the frequency dependence of the material properties are made from the calculated properties and microstructural analysis of each material. Issues which affect transducer performance are discussed in relation to the properties. For transducers larger than about 1 mm in diameter, the use of a lower dielectric constant material is shown to result in a better electrical match between the transducer and a standard 50 Ω termination. For transducers whose impedance is close to that of the connecting cables and electrical termination, equivalent circuit model simulations show improved performance without the need for electrical matching networks. Measurements of fabricated transducers show close agreement with the simulations, validating the measurements and showing the performance benefits of electrically matched transducers     

Calculation of dissipation resistances in a single-element transducer

In this paper, a new formulation of the electrical input impedance of a single element transducer is presented. The resistive part of the electrical impedance that takes into account acoustic radiation in the front medium and losses in the transducer is split into a radiation resistance on one hand and into dissipation resistances related to each transducer component on the other hand. To confirm these theoretical results, characterization methods based on temperature measurements and pulse-echo response are presented. Measurements have been conducted on 1 MHz transducers, which consist of a piezoelectric ceramic glued on a backing. The results show a good agreement between experience and theory for dissipation resistance and radiation resistance values, which confirms the theoretical approach.     

Parametric linear modeling of circular cMUT membranes in vacuum

We present a lumped element parametric model for the clamped circular membrane of a capacitive micromachined ultrasonic transducer (cMUT). The model incorporates an electrical port and two sets of acoustic ports, through which the cMUT couples to the medium. The modeling approach is based on matching a lumped element model and the mechanical impedance of the cMUT membrane at the resonance frequencies in vacuum. Very good agreement between finite element simulation results and model impedance is obtained. Equivalent circuit model parameters can be found from material properties and membrane dimensions without a need for finite element simulation.     

水声换能器基阵互辐射阻抗研究

在水声应用领域中,通常是若干个换能器组成一个基阵进行工作。当换能器基阵工作时,基阵中单个换能器的总辐射阻抗是它自身辐射场的作用以及基阵中其它换能器辐射场作用的总和,这就引入了互辐射阻抗的问题。在水声对抗中,当换能器基阵在大功率状态下工作时,基阵的互辐射阻抗影响尤其需要进行研究分析。结合理论推导得出的规律,介绍了一种研究互辐射阻抗的测量分析方法,分析了一种换能器基阵的互辐射阻抗影响,并最终得到一般性结论。     

Characterizing ultra-thin matching layers of high-frequency ultrasonic transducer based on impedance matching principle

The quarter-wavelength (lambda/4) acoustic matching layer is a vital component in medical ultrasonic transducers, which can compensate for the large acoustic impedance mismatch between the piezoelectric material and the human body. At high frequencies (approximately 100 MHz), the lambda/4 matching layers become extremely thin, and the characterization of their properties becomes very challenging. We report a method to measure the phase velocity and attenuation of ultra-thin layers using the lambda/4 matching principle, in which the acoustic impedance of the thin layer is between the substrate and water. The method has been successfully used to characterize epoxy films on glass substrate. The experimental results show good agreement in the phase-velocity measurement between our proposed method and the conventional ultrasonic spectroscopy method, but the attenuation measurement is sensitive to the properties of the substrate and water medium as well as the alignment of the sample.     

New type of matching layer for air-coupled ultrasonic transducers

This paper presents a new concept in the design of an impedance matching structure for air coupled ultrasonic transducers. A reflective layer structure is inserted between the transducer and propagation medium with a small air space. Adjusting the air space and the reflectivity of the inserted structure causes the transducer impedance to match with the impedance of the propagation medium. Two such structures were investigated as a reflector: a polymer thin film and a thick plate with many holes. Wave impedance theory was applied to these reflecting structures, and the impedance of a thin film layer at the incident surface was calculated using boundary conditions. Impedance of holed plate is calculated in a similar fashion. It was found that the calculated impedance of these structures approximately matched the impedance of the PZT air transducer (40 KHz). The acoustic pressure output was maximized by adjusting the position of the matching structure. A theoretical gain of up to 10 dB in the acoustic pressure was predicted under ideal circumstances, and the experimental observations showed a gain of 9.5 dB in the acoustic pressure for a 12 μm polyethylene film placed at a distance of ~0.1 mm from the transducer's surface. The increase was 9.8 dB for a polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) film and 9.7 dB for a 1.5 mm printed circuit board with many holes at a distance of ~25 μm from the transducer's surface     

表面波电磁声换能器及电声学特性的研究

电磁超声换能器的非接触、信号重复性好等特点使得其在高温自动检测、材料特性测量等领域有着广泛的应用前景。利用电磁超声技术激发表面波更是行之有效的方法,论文着重于理论分析,对表面波电磁声换能器的物理结构、电声学特性作了较为全面和深入的研究,并用等效电路模型探讨了阻抗匹配的方法。结果表明,电磁声换能器为感性负载,不同于压电器件的容性负载特性,因此对换能器的设计和优化也有着独自的特性;随着提离距离的增大,相应的换能效率也将急剧下降;阻抗匹配对于提高信号的输出强度,抑制谐波分量有着重要的作用,而采用电容并联匹配相比串联匹配,能够提供更高的转换效率。     

The universal impedance diagram of the ferrite pot core eddycurrent transducer

Experimental results indicate that the shapes of normalized impedance diagrams of ferrite pot core eddy current transducers are independent of transducer design parameters, lift-off, and material resistivity. When reduced with respect to coupling coefficient, normalized impedance diagrams of this class of transducers are represented by a universal curve. This curve is functionally described by two relationships. The first is that between reactance and the lift-off angle (angle whose tangent is the ratio of the change in the imaginary component of the impedance to the change in the real component). The second is the linear relationship between the tangent of the lift-off angle and the dimensionless ratio of the mean core radius to the skin depth. The lift-off angle is independent of the coupling coefficient. The independence of the functional relationships from the design variables is significant in that an analytic model of this class of eddy current transducers would be greatly simplified by the omission of these variables     

宽频带换能器电匹配网络设计方法

宽带大功率换能器是现代水声发展的一个重要方向,换能器与功放间的匹配也是其关键技术之一。文中从换能器负载阻抗复角与功放管耗散功率及电源供电效率的关系入手,结合窄带阵元串联或并联调谐方法的特点,确定了适合宽带阵元电匹配网络的电路形式。并针对研制的宽带换能器进行了大功率发射试验,取得了较为满意的结果。     

基于机械品质因数的全波压电超声换能器设计

针对全波压电超声换能器常规设计方法存在的尺寸参数较多、计算较复杂等问题,研究了一种利用机械品质因数设计全波压电超声换能器的方法。基于压电超声理论推导了全波压电超声换能器的频率方程,利用电学理论推导了全波压电超声换能器各组成部分的等效电路,利用等效电路求取了在任意等效截面处的等效机械阻抗,进而推导出全波压电超声换能器各部分尺寸参数与其机械品质因数的关系式。利用机械品质因数及频率方程的等高线图,对全波压电超声换能器各部分尺寸进行了设计计算。利用ANSYS对该尺寸全波压电超声换能器的谐振频率进行了仿真分析,结果表明所设计的全波压电超声换能器的谐振频率具有较高的精度,满足工程应用的要求。     

Miniature multimode monolithic flextensional transducers

Traditional flextensional transducers classified in seven groups based on their designs have been used extensively in 1-100 kHz range for mine hunting, fish finding, oil explorations, and biomedical applications. In this study, a new family of small, low cost underwater, and biomedical transducers has been developed. After the fabrication of transducers, finite-elements analysis (FEA) was used extensively in order to optimize these miniature versions of high-power, low-frequency flextensional transducer designs to achieve broad bandwidth for both transmitting and receiving, engineered vibration modes, and optimized acoustic directivity patterns. Transducer topologies with various shapes, cross sections, and symmetries can be fabricated through high-volume, low-cost ceramic and metal extrusion processes. Miniaturized transducers posses resonance frequencies in the range of above 1 MHz to below 10 kHz. Symmetry and design of the transducer, polling patterns, driving and receiving electrode geometries, and driving conditions have a strong effect on the vibration modes, resonance frequencies, and radiation patterns. This paper is devoted to small, multimode flextensional transducers with active shells, which combine the advantages of small size and low-cost manufacturing with control of the shape of the acoustic radiation/receive pattern. The performance of the transducers is emphasized.     

高频宽带换能器多匹配层研究

在水声应用中,高频换能器往往需要较宽的工作带宽,以获得更多的目标信息。文章首先建立了等效电路模型,利用粒子群算法对匹配层材料和厚度进行初步选定,使得换能器具有最宽的工作频带;其次,通过有限元方法对匹配层换能器的导纳和发射电压响应进行分析计算;最后,在理论分析的基础上成功制得三匹配层高频宽带换能器,其工作频段约为150～430 kHz,相对带宽为93%,带内发送电压响应起伏为-6 dB。实验结果表明,三匹配层设计方案可以有效拓宽高频换能器的工作频段。     

Modeling and optimization of high-frequency ultrasound transducers

Obtaining an accurate transducer model for a high-frequency transducer can be troublesome using traditional models, such as the KLM model, since it is often difficult to measure precisely the piezoelectric, dielectric, and mechanical properties of the transducer. This paper describes an alternative method of modeling transducers using network theory. The network theory model for a transducer is determined from a measurement of the transducer impedance in water and the pulse-echo response of the system for a given electrical source and load. A discussion of how this model can be used to optimize the design of an electrical matching circuit is given. This method is illustrated by designing a two-element transmission line matching circuit for a miniature 53 MHz transducer. Excellent agreement between the network model prediction and the experimental response is obtained     

Design of efficient, broadband single-element (20-80 MHz) ultrasonic transducers for medical imaging applications

This paper discusses the design, fabrication, and testing of sensitive broadband lithium niobate (LiNbO/sub 3/) single-element ultrasonic transducers in the 20-80 MHz frequency range. Transducers of varying dimensions were built for an f# range of 2.0-3.1. The desired focal depths were achieved by either casting an acoustic lens on the transducer face or press-focusing the piezoelectric into a spherical curvature. For designs that required electrical impedance matching, a low impedance transmission line coaxial cable was used. All transducers were tested in a pulse-echo arrangement, whereby the center frequency, bandwidth, insertion loss, and focal depth were measured. Several transducers were fabricated with center frequencies in the 20-80 MHz range with the measured -6 dB bandwidths and two-way insertion loss values ranging from 57 to 74% and 9.6 to 21.3 dB, respectively. Both transducer focusing techniques proved successful in producing highly sensitive, high-frequency, single-element, ultrasonic-imaging transducers. In vivo and in vitro ultrasonic backscatter microscope (UBM) images of human eyes were obtained with the 50 MHz transducers. The high sensitivity of these devices could possibly allow for an increase in depth of penetration, higher image signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), and improved image contrast at high frequencies when compared to previously reported results.     

准1-3复合型压电换能器的研制

水声高频换能器在水声领域具有广泛运用,然而常规厚度振动高频换能器在高频段存在强烈的高次径向耦合振动,制作出的换能器出现了阻抗曲线杂乱,相位一致性差,电声效率低的问题。设计制作了一种单一振动模态的换能器,通过将常规厚度振动换能器陶瓷片切割成密排矩形颗粒,再用环氧树脂将切缝填充满。制作两片直径为55mm的准1-3复合材料,由该材料制作的换能器谐振频率为293kHz,谐振点阻抗50,3dB阻抗带宽23.5 kHz,3dB开角为5.75°,50W电功率输出声源级达到217.5dB。通过该工艺可以消除高频厚度振动换能器的高次径向耦合振动,提高高频厚度振动换能器的电声转换效率和一致性,并能实现批量制作,为高频换能器在水声领域的广泛运用提供了新的手段。     

Narrowband impedance matching layer for high efficiency thickness mode ultrasonic transducers

A new matching layer design concept has been proposed for narrowband continuous wave (CW) devices. Analysis has shown that the mechanical impedance of a resonant-type transducer in thickness mode CW operation does not equal its acoustic impedance ρVs but roughly equals ρVs/Q, where ρ is density, Vs is acoustic velocity, and Q is the mechanical quality factor. The value of ρVs/Q is much lower than the acoustic impedance of water for any transducer material, including lead zirconium titanate (PZT), single crystals, or polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF). With this new approach, the impedance of the matching layer must also be between water and ρVs/Q, but there are few such practical low impedance materials. To realize equivalent low impedance structure, a novel double layer design is presented: a relatively low impedance material (such as polyethylene or polyurethane) on the inside and a relatively high impedance material (such as polyester or metal) on the outside. A high power CW transducer structure was designed and fabricated with PVDF-TrFE (polyvinylidene fluoride trifluoroethylene) to operate at 1.4 MHz     

High-frequency transducers based on integrated piezoelectric thick films for medical imaging

A screen-printed PZT thick film with a final thickness of about 40 microm was deposited on a porous PZT substrate to obtain an integrated structure for ultrasonic transducer applications. This process makes it possible to decrease the number of steps in the fabrication of high-frequency, single-element transducers. The porous PZT substrates allow high acoustic impedance and attenuation to be obtained, satisfying transducer backing requirements for medical imaging. The piezoelectric thick films deliver high electromechanical performance, comparable to that of standard bulk ceramics (thickness coupling factor over 45%). Based on these structures, high-frequency transducers with a center frequency of about 25 MHz were produced and characterized. As a result, good sensitivity and axial resolution were obtained in comparison with similar transducers integrating a lead titanate (PT) disk as active material. The two transducers were integrated into a high-frequency imaging system, and comparative skin images are shown.     

Novel integrated impedance matching layer

High performance clinical and industrial ultrasonic transducers require an impedance matching layer with controlled acoustic properties for efficient coupling of acoustic energy between the piezoelectric layer and the propagating medium. The principles of operation, design requirements and performance of a novel integrated impedance matching layer are discussed here. This integrated impedance matching layer is a composite of inert lead zirconate titanate (PZT) ceramic and conformal polymer filler material     

Ultrasonic transducers as a black-box: equivalent circuit synthesis and matching network design

A new modeling technique for ultrasonic transducers is developed in order to build an analytical model in the Laplace s-domain. The model is intended for use in analog circuit CAD system for the front-end electronic design and to visualize the acoustic pulse modifications under different excitation conditions. The transducer is characterized by two analytical functions representing the driving point impedance and the electroacoustic transfer function. The transfer function is obtained as the ratio of the transducer axial response and the excitation voltage. The reference responses of the impedance and transfer function are derived by the Fourier transform of the measured signals. The model is derived by the measurements of the driving point current and voltage, and the field axial response is sensed by a hydrophone. The procedure for the model identification is described. The results of testing 5-MHz transducer for medical applications are presented. An approach for the design of broadband matching networks using a constant resistance network is reported.