IEEE transactions on ultrasonics, ferroelectrics, and frequency control最新文献

{"title":"Selective Subnucleus Ultrasound Stimulation Induces Synaptic Potentiation in the Mouse Hippocampus","authors":"Wei Zhou;Pengqi Li;Wen Meng;Stephanie Hong Zheng;Shixiong Zhang;Shasha Yi;Minghui Gao;Zhengrong Lin","doi":"10.1109/TUFFC.2025.3531971","DOIUrl":"10.1109/TUFFC.2025.3531971","url":null,"abstract":"Ultrasound neuromodulation enables to elicit of long-lasting effect on neural activities and behavioral responses across species, including humans. However, the potential biophysical mechanism of ultrasound stimulation to induce neuroplasticity is still unclear. In this study, we developed a miniature, high target-specificity ultrasound neuro-stimulation chip to selectively stimulate subnucleus and investigate the synaptic plasticity induced by ultrasound stimulation in mouse hippocampal slices. The design of the narrow aperture planar interdigital transducers (IDTs) could reach a 1.3-mm acoustic beam to precisely stimulate the presynaptic CA3 neurons. Acoustic long-term potentiation (A-LTP) was induced by the ultrasound neuro-stimulation chip with 1-ms pulsed duration and different acoustic pressures at 100-Hz repetition frequency [100-Hz low-intensity pulsed ultrasound stimulation (LIPUS)] in the CA3 subregion. Synaptic plasticity was measured by the slope of field excitatory postsynaptic potentials (fEPSPs), which were elicited using bipolar electrical stimulation (ES) electrodes in the Schaffer collaterals of CA3 region and recorded in postsynaptic CA1 neurons using extracellular electrodes. The LTP induced by ultrasound was compared to conventional 100-Hz tetanic ES (100-Hz ES). Our results confirmed that ultrasound stimulation of CA3 significantly induces LTP-like synaptic plasticity when the applied acoustic pressure was 1.08 MPa. The success rate of A-LTP and the average weight of synaptic potentiation level were significantly increased with the increment of acoustic pressure. Moreover, A-LTP was mainly due to the mechanical effects of acoustic waves, but not the thermal or cavitation effects. These results demonstrated that the high-precision ultrasound neuro-stimulation chip can selectively modulate the neural activities in the subnuclear brain region to induce synaptic potentiation, clarifying the biophysical mechanism of A-LTP.","PeriodicalId":13322,"journal":{"name":"IEEE transactions on ultrasonics, ferroelectrics, and frequency control","volume":"72 4","pages":"454-466"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-01-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143541852","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Temperature Dependence of the Sensitivity of Hydrophones for Biomedical Ultrasound Exposimetry","authors":"Volker Wilkens;Martin Weber;Jennifer Twiefel","doi":"10.1109/TUFFC.2025.3527625","DOIUrl":"10.1109/TUFFC.2025.3527625","url":null,"abstract":"Though it has been recognized that the sensitivity of hydrophones depends on the temperature of the water they are used in, the amount of specific data that is available is very limited. This is possible because the measurements are technically challenging, laborious, and time-consuming. A broadband primary hydrophone calibration setup was extended to implement stable calibration conditions at different temperature settings. Four hydrophones of different types commonly used in ultrasound exposimetry were then characterized in the range from 17 °C to 29 °C, and average change rates of the sensitivity with temperature were determined for different ultrasonic frequencies. Two different membrane hydrophones showed an increase in sensitivity with increasing temperature in the range from 0.55% to 1.10% per 1 °C temperature rise within their bandwidths. The results for a capsule-type and a needle-type hydrophone were different in the sense that a decreasing sensitivity with increasing temperature was also observed. For the capsule-type hydrophone, a small increase was observed up to 15 MHz and a decrease for higher frequencies. The needle-type hydrophone provided a decrease at all frequencies, and the results were more noisy. Data, as determined in this study, can be applied to correct acoustic output measurements of medical ultrasonic equipment if the water temperature of the hydrophone application differs from that during calibration. Alternatively, it may suffice in some applications to consider a sensitivity change with temperature within the uncertainty estimation of the exposure measurement, in particular, if the temperature difference is limited to 1 °C or 2 °C.","PeriodicalId":13322,"journal":{"name":"IEEE transactions on ultrasonics, ferroelectrics, and frequency control","volume":"72 3","pages":"362-369"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-01-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143541855","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Variable Curvature Flexible Transducer for Abdominal Expandable Imaging","authors":"Jianzhong Chen;Bing Zhuang;Jiaxing Peng;Zhe Zhang;Bo Wang;Chunsun Dai;Dawei Wu","doi":"10.1109/TUFFC.2025.3527543","DOIUrl":"10.1109/TUFFC.2025.3527543","url":null,"abstract":"Expanding the imaging field of view (FOV) of medical ultrasound transducers will more effectively detect pathological behaviors of tissues or organs. Conventional rigid transducers can be realized by increasing the number of array elements or the curvature; however, the imaging aperture is fixed by the original size and shape during the manufacturing process. This article presented a 128-element, 3-MHz flexible curvature abdominal array (FCAA) with the goal of dynamically expanding the FOV within a 120° range. The piezoelectric stack was divided into small pitches through a double-cut process, and two-component viscoelastic substrates (TCVSs) were filled between adjacent array elements to generate tensile and compressive stresses during decomposition deformation. A 3-D-printed push-pull device provides sufficient mechanical support, resulting in a conformal minimum curvature radius of 46 mm. The innovative rigid-flexible composite backing layer was used to balance mechanical flexibility and high bandwidth (BW) of −6 dB to 67.6%. The results showed that the axial and lateral resolutions of the commercial phantom line target are 0.35 and 0.77 mm, respectively, and the axial and lateral resolutions of FOV 120° are 0.36 and 1.02 mm, respectively. The imaging performance of FCAA was verified by B-model imaging of the kidneys, intestines, uterus, and bladder of volunteers with a different body mass index (BMI). In addition, the 5-mm renal artery phantom verified the Doppler imaging function of FCAA. All the results demonstrated that FCPA has great potential clinical value in abdominal ultrasound and gynecological examination.","PeriodicalId":13322,"journal":{"name":"IEEE transactions on ultrasonics, ferroelectrics, and frequency control","volume":"72 3","pages":"299-308"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-01-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143541893","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"IEEE Transactions on Ultrasonics, Ferroelectrics, and Frequency Control Publication Information","authors":"","doi":"10.1109/TUFFC.2024.3520761","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/TUFFC.2024.3520761","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":13322,"journal":{"name":"IEEE transactions on ultrasonics, ferroelectrics, and frequency control","volume":"71 12: Breaking the Resolution Barrier in Ultrasound","pages":"C2-C2"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-01-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=10834409","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142938170","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Double Metal Dots Configuration for Suppression of Spurious Responses in Temperature Compensated Surface Acoustic Wave Resonators on SiO₂/LiNbO₃ Structure","authors":"Temesgen Bailie Workie;Xiuwen Bi;Lingqin Zhang;Junyao Shen;Quhuan Shen;Jingfu Bao;Ken-ya Hashimoto","doi":"10.1109/TUFFC.2025.3526958","DOIUrl":"10.1109/TUFFC.2025.3526958","url":null,"abstract":"This article proposes a double metal dots interdigital transducer (IDT) configuration for suppression of spurious responses in temperature-compensated surface acoustic wave (SAW) resonators employing the SiO2/LiNbO3 structure. The proposed IDT configuration includes primary metal dots at the edges of the IDT aperture region, and in addition, secondary metal dots placed near the busbars with the addition of short dummy electrodes. This double metal dots IDT configuration enables us to effectively suppress two kinds of spurious resonances: the transverse resonances that are common and the ones that are predominantly excited in the gap regions between IDT finger edges and busbars. The impact of geometric parameters on suppressing spurious responses is studied using periodic 3-D finite element simulations. Then, it is shown both theoretically and experimentally that the proposed mechanism can effectively suppress almost all spurious responses without affecting the critical performance metrics such as the quality factor and electromechanical coupling coefficient.","PeriodicalId":13322,"journal":{"name":"IEEE transactions on ultrasonics, ferroelectrics, and frequency control","volume":"72 3","pages":"390-396"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-01-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143541883","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Optical-Comb-Based Frequency Stability Transfer Across the Spectrum With a Multichannel FPGA","authors":"Paolo Savio;Irene Goti;Marco Pizzocaro;Filippo Levi;Davide Calonico;Cecilia Clivati","doi":"10.1109/TUFFC.2025.3526761","DOIUrl":"10.1109/TUFFC.2025.3526761","url":null,"abstract":"Using the optical comb as a transfer oscillator is an effective approach to convert the spectral properties of ultrastable lasers to other wavelength domains. We describe a digital locking system that enables this process to be replicated for several lasers at a time, supporting the simultaneous and independent lock of up to six lasers to a single, high-performance reference oscillator. The locks are robust, easily reconfigured, and contribute a short-term instability lower than <inline-formula> <tex-math>$3times 10^{-{18}}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> at 1 s, even when the comb is operated in the broad-linewidth regime and with no need for lasers prestabilization. With this system, we transfer the coherence of the ultrastable clock laser of a Yb optical lattice clock at 1156 nm to various lasers in the 1550 nm region, including the one used for frequency dissemination with long-distance fibers, with less than <inline-formula> <tex-math>$1times 10^{-17}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> instability at 1 s. The digital implementation enables a modular approach with enhanced control over operational parameters, minimizing setup complexity and hardware-related undesired effects. It also allows for immediate reconfiguration and seamless upgrades, being suitable for applications requiring multiple ultrastable lasers at different wavelengths, such as local or distributed optical clock ensembles, coherent spectroscopy, and quantum simulation.","PeriodicalId":13322,"journal":{"name":"IEEE transactions on ultrasonics, ferroelectrics, and frequency control","volume":"72 3","pages":"397-406"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-01-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=10830575","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143541849","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Beamformer for a Lensed Row–Column Array in 3-D Ultrasound Imaging","authors":"Ali Salari;Mélanie Audoin;Borislav Gueorguiev Tomov;Billy Y. S. Yiu;Erik Vilain Thomsen;Jørgen Arendt Jensen","doi":"10.1109/TUFFC.2025.3526523","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/TUFFC.2025.3526523","url":null,"abstract":"Row-column (RC) arrays typically suffer from a limited field of view (FOV), with the imaging area confined to a rectangular region equal to the footprint of the probe. This limitation can be solved by using a diverging lens in front of the probe. Previous studies have introduced a thin lens model for beamforming lensed RC arrays, but this model inaccurately assumes the lens to be infinitely thin, leading to degraded resolution and contrast due to errors in the time of flight (TOF) calculations. This article presents a beamformer based on ray tracing for accurate TOF calculation. A Verasonics Vantage 256 scanner was equipped with a Vermon RC probe with <inline-formula> <tex-math>${128}+{128}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> elements, <inline-formula> <tex-math>$lambda $ </tex-math></inline-formula> pitch, and a <inline-formula> <tex-math>${6}~textit {MHz}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> center frequency. A synthetic aperture ultrasound sequence with 96 virtual sources and 32 active elements for each emission with row elements was employed, and all column elements were used for acquiring data. This method was tested with a polystyrene (PS) lens with a spherical shape and polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) in a bicylindrical shape. Based on pressure field measurements, these two lenses provide a 20° and 33° FOV, respectively. The thin lens model had a lateral resolution of around <inline-formula> <tex-math>$17.4lambda $ </tex-math></inline-formula> for the bicylindrical lens, whereas the new method achieves a resolution of around <inline-formula> <tex-math>$3.8lambda $ </tex-math></inline-formula>, representing a 4.6-fold improvement. The contrast is enhanced from 23.1 to 29.8 dB for the bicylindrical lens while preserving the FOV.","PeriodicalId":13322,"journal":{"name":"IEEE transactions on ultrasonics, ferroelectrics, and frequency control","volume":"72 2","pages":"238-250"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-01-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143388551","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Noninvasive Fluid-Level Sensing in Pipelines Using Ultrasonic Techniques","authors":"Lalith Sai Srinivas Pillarisetti;Eric S. Davis;Abhishek Saini;Pavel Vakhlamov;Cristian Pantea","doi":"10.1109/TUFFC.2024.3525407","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/TUFFC.2024.3525407","url":null,"abstract":"Accurate fluid-level assessment in sealed pipelines is crucial in wastewater treatment and petrochemical plants, among others. The traditional pulse-echo time-of-flight measurements using ultrasound sensors to measure the fluid level are challenging for low fill levels due to signal contamination with multiple echoes and the resonances in the pipe wall. Though signal-processing strategies such as baseline subtraction and narrowband filtering away from the pipe resonance frequencies improve pulse-echo measurements, low-fill-level detection remains challenging. In this work, we identify these limitations of the pulse-echo technique and propose a resonance-based ultrasonic technique that is accurate and sensitive even at low fill levels. This technique relies on the attenuation of pipe resonances in the presence of fluid, which is validated numerically using time-domain finite-element simulations and experimentally performing resonance measurements on a fluid-filled pipe using an array of transducers. However, the pulse-echo and resonance techniques demand precise calibration with the pipe system before use. To mitigate the need for calibration, we propose a wedge-based phased-array imaging technique based on the total focusing method (TFM) for fluid-level sensing. We discuss the challenges in wedge selection and array positioning and numerically validate the efficiency of TFM to provide better visualization of low fluid levels using a strategy to filter the image artifacts selectively. The presented ultrasonic techniques have significant industrial importance for applications requiring noninvasive fluid-level measurements.","PeriodicalId":13322,"journal":{"name":"IEEE transactions on ultrasonics, ferroelectrics, and frequency control","volume":"72 2","pages":"154-168"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-01-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143388598","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Transcranial Focused Ultrasound Modifies Disease Progression in SOD1G93A Mouse Model of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis","authors":"Zhongqiu Hong;Shasha Yi;Miaoqin Deng;Yongsheng Zhong;Yun Zhao;Lili Li;Hui Zhou;Yang Xiao;Xiquan Hu;Lili Niu","doi":"10.1109/TUFFC.2024.3525143","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/TUFFC.2024.3525143","url":null,"abstract":"Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressively worsening neurodegenerative condition with very few treatment options available. Ultrasound neuromodulation offers promising benefits for treating neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases. However, the effects and underlying mechanisms of ultrasound neuromodulation on ALS remain unclear. A head-mounted ultrasound neuromodulation system was developed to noninvasively stimulate the motor cortex of symptomatic mice carrying the G93A human SOD1 mutation (SOD<inline-formula> <tex-math>$1^{text {G93A}}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>) for four weeks. Motor performance was assessed through the rotarod locomotor test, grip strength test, and open field test. In addition, the effect of ultrasound stimulation on the elastic modulus of gastrocnemius muscle atrophy was measured using real-time shear wave elastography (SWE). Subsequently, the brain tissues of the mice were harvested. Gastrocnemius morphology was examined using hematoxylin-eosin and Gomori aldehyde-fuchsin (GAF) staining. The number of neurons and the phenotype of microglia in the motor cortex were observed by immunohistochemical analysis. Ultrasound therapy delayed disease onset by 10.7% and increased the lifespan by 6.7% in SOD<inline-formula> <tex-math>$1^{text {G93A}}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> mice by reduction of neuronal loss and enhancement of M2 microglia in the motor cortex. Furthermore, we found significant improvements in motor function for ultrasound-treated mice. More importantly, ultrasound stimulation ameliorated gastrocnemius muscle atrophy in the SOD<inline-formula> <tex-math>$1^{text {G93A}}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> mice. These results revealed the neuroprotective effects of ultrasound against the disease pathogenesis of SOD<inline-formula> <tex-math>$1^{text {G93A}}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> mice. Transcranial ultrasound neuromodulation provides an innovative tool for the intervention and treatment of neurodegenerative diseases.","PeriodicalId":13322,"journal":{"name":"IEEE transactions on ultrasonics, ferroelectrics, and frequency control","volume":"72 2","pages":"191-201"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-01-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143388641","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"52-GHz Surface Acoustic Wave Resonators in Thin-Film Lithium Niobate on Silicon Carbide","authors":"Joshua Campbell;Tzu-Hsuan Hsu;Lezli Matto;Naveed Ahmed;Mihir Chaudhari;Ziran Du;Ian Anderson;Jack Kramer;Vakhtang Chulukhadze;Kaicheung Chow;Ming-Huang Li;Mark S. Goorsky;Ruochen Lu","doi":"10.1109/TUFFC.2024.3522042","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1109/TUFFC.2024.3522042","url":null,"abstract":"This article reports a surface acoustic wave (SAW) resonator at 52 GHz with a high quality factor (Q) of 188 and a high phase velocity of 12.2 km/s, marking the first millimeter-wave (mmWave) SAW devices with high Q. Transferred 300-nm 128Y lithium niobate (LN) thin film on 4H silicon carbide (SiC) substrate is used for the acoustic platform. The dramatic frequency scaling is enabled by the high phase velocity thickness-shear mode, confined in the LN-SiC stack, due to the high stiffness and acoustic velocity of SiC. The high phase velocity of 12.2 km/s is approaching the longitudinal wave velocity of 12.5 km/s in 4H SiC. The resonator achieves electromechanical coupling (<inline-formula> <tex-math>${k}^{{2}}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>) of 0.5%, 3-dB series resonance Q (<inline-formula> <tex-math>${Q}_{s}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>) of 12, 3-dB shunt resonance Q (<inline-formula> <tex-math>${Q}_{p}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>) of 188, and maximum Bode Q of 154. Upon further development, the mmWave solidly mounted acoustic platform could enable various applications in signal processing, optomechanical, and quantum applications","PeriodicalId":13322,"journal":{"name":"IEEE transactions on ultrasonics, ferroelectrics, and frequency control","volume":"72 2","pages":"275-282"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2024-12-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143388654","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}