An integrated beamforming driver for CMUT based ultrasound catheter ablation system

Abstract

In CMUT based ultrasound catheter ablation systems, transducer arrays and their drivers are to be kept as small as possible due to size restrictions, while maintaining a reasonable number of channels for proper beamforming. In addition, these systems should be highly integrated with minimal power consumption for flexibility and functionality. Despite the size restrictions on these systems, such problems can be overcome by ASICs. In this work, we present a simple 8 channel high-frequency, high-voltage driver, together with its beamforming and control circuitry designed with AMS's H35 high voltage process.