Intravascular ultrasound tissue harmonic imaging: a simulation study

Recently, the in vivo feasibility of tissue harmonic imaging (THI) with a mechanically-rotated intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) catheter was experimentally demonstrated. To isolate the second harmonic signal content, both pulse inversion (PI) and analog filtering were used. In the present paper, we report the development of a simulation tool to investigate nonlinear IVUS beams and the influence of rotation on the efficiency of PI signal processing. Nonlinear 20 MHz beams were simulated in a homogeneous tissue-mimicking medium, resulting in second harmonic pressure fields at 40 MHz. The acoustic response from tissue was simulated by summing radio-frequency (RF) pulse-echo responses from many point-scatterers. When the transducer was rotated with respect to the point-scatterers, the fundamental frequency suppression using PI degraded rapidly with increasing inter-pulse angles. The results of this study will aid in the optimization of harmonic IVUS imaging systems.     

Experimental investigation of the pulse inversion technique for imaging ultrasound contrast agents

The application of ultrasound contrast agents aims to detect low velocity blood flow in the microcirculation. To enhance discrimination between tissue and blood containing the contrast agent, harmonic imaging is used. Harmonic imaging requires the application of narrow-band signals and is obscured by high levels of native harmonics generated in an intervening medium. To improve discrimination between contrast agent and native harmonics, a pulse inversion technique has been proposed. Pulse inversion allows wide-band signals, thus preserving the axial resolution. The present study examines the interference of native harmonics and discusses the practical difficulties of wide-band pulse inversion measurements of harmonics by a single transducer. Native harmonics are not eliminated by pulse inversion. Furthermore, only even harmonics remain and are amplified by 6 dB, alleviating the requirement for selective filtering. Finally, it is shown that the contaminating third harmonic contained in the square wave activation signal leaks through in the emitted signal. The spectral location of the contaminating third harmonic is governed by the transducer spectral characteristics while the location of the native and contrast agent second harmonics is not. Thus the contaminating third harmonic and the native and contrast agent second harmonics may overlap and interfere. Optimal discrimination requires a balance between maximal sensitivity for the second harmonic at reception and minimal interference from the contaminating third harmonic.     

Third order harmonic imaging for biological tissues using three phase-coded pulses

Compared to the fundamental and the second harmonic imaging, the third harmonic imaging shows significant improvements in image quality due to the better resolution, but it is degraded by the lower sound pressure and signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). In this study, a phase-coded pulse technique is proposed to selectively enhance the sound pressure of the third harmonic by 9.5 dB whereas the fundamental and the second harmonic components are efficiently suppressed and SNR is also increased by 4.7 dB. Based on the solution of the KZK nonlinear equation, the axial and lateral beam profiles of harmonics radiated from a planar piston transducer were theoretically simulated and experimentally examined. Finally, the third harmonic images using this technique were performed for several biological tissues and compared with the images obtained by the fundamental and the second harmonic imaging. Results demonstrate that the phase-coded pulse technique yields a dramatically cleaner and sharper contrast image.     

生物组织成像中用反相位脉冲技术提高二次谐波信噪比的研究

本文基于有限振幅声波在介质中的非线性传播理论,分析了反相位脉冲技术对生物组织中二次谐波增强的原理.实验中利用反相位脉冲激发超声换能器,对生物组织中传播的非线性信号相加分析.结果表明反相位脉冲技术可有效抑制基波及奇次谐波信号,而可增强偶次谐波信号6dB.与滤波器滤波法相比,反相位脉冲技术在抑制基波信号的同时,可有效地提高二次谐波的信噪比,因而在生物组织的二次谐波成像中具有广阔的应用前景.     

Third harmonic transmit phasing for SNR improvement in tissue harmonic imaging with Golay-encoded excitation

Background

Ultrasound tissue harmonic signal generally provides superior image quality as compared to the linear signal. However, since the generation of the tissue harmonic signal is based on finite amplitude distortion of the propagating waveform, the penetration and the sensitivity in tissue harmonic imaging are markedly limited because of the low signal-to-noise ratio (SNR).

Methods

The method of third harmonic (3f₀) transmit phasing can improve the tissue harmonic SNR by transmitting at both the fundamental (2.25 MHz) and the 3f₀ (6.75 MHz) frequencies to achieve mutual enhancement between the frequency-sum and the frequency-difference components of the second harmonic signal. To further increase the SNR without excessive transmit pressure, coded excitation can be incorporated in 3f₀ transmit phasing to boost the tissue harmonic generation.

Results

Our analyses indicate that the phase-encoded Golay excitation is suitable in 3f₀ transmit phasing due to its superior transmit bandwidth efficiency. The resultant frequency-sum and frequency-difference components of tissue harmonic signal can be simultaneously Golay-encoded for SNR improvement. The increase of the main-lobe signal with the Golay excitation in 3f₀ transmit phasing are consistent between the tissue harmonic measurements and the simulations. B-mode images of the speckle generating phantom also demonstrate the increases of tissue harmonic SNR for about 11 dB without noticeable compression artifacts.

Conclusion

For tissue harmonic imaging in combination with the 3f₀ transmit phasing method, the Golay excitation can provide further SNR improvement. Meanwhile, the axial resolution can be effectively restored by pulse compression while the lateral resolution remains unchanged.     

The feasibility of pulse compression by nonlinear effective bandwidth extension

Chirp-encoded excitation has been utilized for increased signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) in both linear and harmonic imaging. In either case, it is necessary to isolate the relevant frequency band to avoid artifacts. In contrast, the present study isolates and then combines the fundamental and the higher harmonics, treating them as a single, extended bandwidth. Pulse-inverted sum and difference signals are first used to isolate even and odd harmonics. Matched filters specific to the source geometry and the transmit signal are then separately applied to each harmonic band. Verification experiments are performed using up to the third harmonic resulting from an underwater chirp excitation. Analysis of signal peaks after scattering from a series of steel and nylon wires indicates increased compression using the extended bandwidth, as compared to well-established methods for fundamental and second harmonic chirp compression. Using third harmonic bands, a mean pulse width of 56% relative to fundamental compression and 48% relative to second harmonic compression was observed. Further optimization of the compression by altering the transmission indicated 17% additional reduction in the pulse width and a 47% increase in peak-to-sidelobe ratio. Overall, results establish the feasibility of extended bandwidth signal compression for simultaneously increasing SNR and signal resolution.     

Pulse compression technique for simultaneous HIFU surgery and ultrasonic imaging: a preliminary study

In an ultrasound image-guided High Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU) surgery, reflected HIFU waves received by an imaging transducer should be suppressed for real-time simultaneous imaging and therapy. In this paper, we investigate the feasibility of pulse compression scheme combined with notch filtering in order to minimize these HIFU interference signals. A chirp signal modulated by the Dolph-Chebyshev window with 3-9 MHz frequency sweep range is used for B-mode imaging and 4 MHz continuous wave is used for HIFU. The second order infinite impulse response notch filters are employed to suppress reflected HIFU waves whose center frequencies are 4 MHz and 8 MHz. The prototype integrated HIFU/imaging transducer that composed of three rectangular elements with a spherically con-focused aperture was fabricated. The center element has the ability to transmit and receive 6 MHz imaging signals and two outer elements are only used for transmitting 4 MHz continuous HIFU wave. When the chirp signal and 4 MHz HIFU wave are simultaneously transmitted to the target, the reflected chirp signals mixed with 4 MHz and 8 MHz HIFU waves are detected by the imaging transducer. After the application of notch filtering with pulse compression process, HIFU interference waves in this mixed signal are significantly reduced while maintaining original imaging signal. In the single scanline test using a strong reflector, the amplitude of the reflected HIFU wave is reduced to −45 dB. In vitro test, with a sliced porcine muscle shows that the speckle pattern of the restored B-mode image is close to that of the original image. These preliminary results demonstrate the potential for the pulse compression scheme with notch filtering to achieve real-time ultrasound image-guided HIFU surgery.     

Wideband high-frequency line-focus PVDF transducer for materials characterization

This paper presents the design, fabrication, operating characteristics and applications of a wideband, high-frequency, line-focus beam transducer we constructed using a 9 microm thick piezoelectric polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) film. This transducer possesses a focal length of 2.38 mm and an aperture angle of 84 degrees. The frequency spectrum of the signal measured at the focal point indicates that the transducer has a wide frequency response which extends from 10 MHz to over 100 MHz. When compensated for the frequency-dependent attenuation of the coupling medium, the operational frequency exceeds 150 MHz. The transducer can be operated in a time-resolved pulse mode or in a radio-frequency (rf) tone burst mode. An application of the transducer to determine the anisotropic elastic property of a silicon wafer is demonstrated. The phase velocities of surface acoustic waves (SAW) propagating along various directions on the (001) surface of cubic silicon are measured and compared to computed values.     

Pulse inversion ultrasound modulated optical tomography

Pulse inversion acoustic imaging is useful as it allows second harmonic imaging to be obtained with short acoustic pulses. This allows high axial resolution, but removes any overlap in the frequency spectra of fundamental and harmonic. We demonstrate pulse inversion ultrasound modulated optical tomography using an optical speckle based detection method. Inverted and non-inverted acoustic pulses combined with synchronized strobed illumination are applied to an optically scattering medium. Over the acquisition time of a camera, multiple pulses are summed and at the next frame the phase of the ultrasound is shifted by π/2 and the process repeated. Combining the two frames allows a second harmonic signal to be obtained. A reduction in linewidth is observed (DC=9.26 mm, fundamental=4.02 mm, second harmonic=2.43 mm) in line scans of optically absorbing objects embedded in a scattering medium (thickness=16 mm, scattering coefficient=2.3 mm(-1), anisotropy factor=0.938).     

Transfer functions of US transducers for harmonic imaging and bubble responses

Current medical diagnostic echo systems are mostly using harmonic imaging. This means that a fundamental frequency (e.g., 2 MHz) is transmitted and the reflected and scattered higher harmonics (e.g., 4 and 6 MHz), produced by nonlinear propagation, are recorded. The signal level of these harmonics is usually low and a well-defined transfer function of the receiving transducer is required. Studying the acoustic response of a single contrast bubble, which has an amplitude in the order of a few Pascal, is another area where an optimal receive transfer function is important.

We have developed three methods to determine the absolute transfer function of a transducer. The first is based on a well-defined wave generated by a calibrated source in the far field. The receiving transducer receives the calibrated wave and from this the transfer functions can be calculated. The second and third methods are based on the reciprocity of the transducer. The second utilizes a calibrated hydrophone to measure the transmitted field. In the third method, a pulse is transmitted by the transducer, which impinges on a reflector and is received again by the same transducer. In both methods, the response combined with the transducer impedance and beam profiles enables the calculation of the transfer function.

The proposed methods are useful to select the optimal piezoelectric material (PZT, single crystal) for transducers used in reception only, such as in certain 3D scanning designs and superharmonic imaging, and for selected experiments like single bubble behavior.

We tested and compared these methods on two unfocused single element transducers, one commercially available (radius 6.35 mm, centre frequency 2.25 MHz) the other custom built (radius 0.75 mm, centre frequency 4.3 MHz). The methods were accurate to within 15%.     

Fundamental study on subharmonic imaging by irradiation of amplitude-modulated ultrasound waves

The second harmonic and subharmonic components, the frequencies of which are twice and one half the fundamental frequency, are included in echoes from contrast agents. An imaging method, which employs a second harmonic (second harmonic imaging), is widely used in medical diagnoses. On the other hand, subharmonic is expected to provide a higher contrast between biological tissues and blood flow because echo signals are generated only from blood containing the contrast agents. However, the subharmonic component echo signal power from contrast agents is relatively low. This has resulted in little progress in the field of subharmonic imaging. In this study, a new imaging method is proposed using amplitude-modulated waves as transmitted waves combined with the pulse inversion method to enhance subharmonic echo signals. Two optimal frequencies are set, including the modulated waves, F(1) and F(2), so that the subharmonic frequency of F(1) and the second harmonic frequency of F(2) may result in the same value. This allows a more powerful signal at the frequency band because the second harmonic and subharmonic components are integrated. Furthermore, a B-mode ultrasound image of an agar phantom that imitated biological tissue and showed the effectiveness of our method was reconstructed. As a result, the echo power of the subharmonic component was enhanced by approximately 11.8 dB more than the conventional method and the signal to noise ratio showed an improvement of 7.6 dB.     

Feasibility of 3D harmonic contrast imaging

Improved endocardial border delineation with the application of contrast agents should allow for less complex and faster tracing algorithms for left ventricular volume analysis. We developed a fast rotating phased array transducer for 3D imaging of the heart with harmonic capabilities making it suitable for contrast imaging. In this study the feasibility of 3D harmonic contrast imaging is evaluated in vitro. A commercially available tissue mimicking flow phantom was used in combination with Sonovue. Backscatter power spectra from a tissue and contrast region of interest were calculated from recorded radio frequency data. The spectra and the extracted contrast to tissue ratio from these spectra were used to optimize the excitation frequency, the pulse length and the receive filter settings of the transducer. Frequencies ranging from 1.66 to 2.35 MHz and pulse lengths of 1.5, 2 and 2.5 cycles were explored. An increase of more than 15 dB in the contrast to tissue ratio was found around the second harmonic compared with the fundamental level at an optimal excitation frequency of 1.74 MHz and a pulse length of 2.5 cycles. Using the optimal settings for 3D harmonic contrast recordings volume measurements of a left ventricular shaped agar phantom were performed. Without contrast the extracted volume data resulted in a volume error of 1.5%, with contrast an accuracy of 3.8% was achieved. The results show the feasibility of accurate volume measurements from 3D harmonic contrast images. Further investigations will include the clinical evaluation of the presented technique for improved assessment of the heart.     

Design and modeling of inversion layer ultrasonic transducers using LiNbO3 single crystal

Using inversion domain engineering controlled by heating temperature, the LiNbO(3) (LNO) piezoelectric plate with both odd and even-order thickness-extensional modes can be excited simultaneously. Therefore, the inversion layer ultrasound transducer is expected to be capable of operating over a wider frequency range. In this paper, the electrical impedance and the acoustic characteristics of LiNbO(3) (LNO) inversion layer transducer have been studied by finite element modeling (FEM). The transducer designed for this study uses a 36 degrees rotated Y-cut LiNbO(3) thin plate with an active element thickness of approximately 100 microm. First the electrical and elastic properties of the 36 degrees rotated Y-cut LNO were obtained by transforming a basic piezoelectric matrix for Z-cut LNO. In order to validate the FEM using the transformed properties several pieces of pure and 50% inversion layer LNO were tested on the electrical impedance analyzer. The modeled impedance characteristics were consistent with the measured data. Next the model was used to design 50-60 MHz transducers using pure and 30% inversion LNO. Two lambda/4 matching layers and a Tungsten loaded epoxy backing were used in these designs. The modeled results show that an over 90% bandwidth transducer can be made with proper matching and 30% inversion layer.     

Fast simulation of second harmonic ultrasound field using a quasi-linear method

Nonlinear propagation of sound has been exploited in the last 15 years in medical ultrasound imaging through tissue harmonic imaging (THI). THI creates an image by filtering the received ultrasound echo around the second harmonic frequency band. This technique produces images of enhanced quality due to reduced body wall reverberation, lower perturbations from off-axis echoes, and multiple scattering of reduced amplitude. In order to optimize the image quality it is essential to be able to predict the amplitude level and spatial distribution of the propagating ultrasound pulse. A method based on the quasi-linear approximation has been developed to quickly provide an estimate of the ultrasound pulse. This method does not need to propagate the pulse stepwise from the source plane to the desired depth; it directly computes a transverse profile at any depth from the definitions of the transducer and the pulse. The computation handles three spatial dimensions which allows for any transducer geometry. A comparison of pulse forms, transverse profiles, as well as axial profiles obtained by this method and state-of-the-art simulators, the KZKTexas code, and Abersim, shows a satisfactory match. The computation time for the quasi-linear method is also smaller than the time required by the other methods.     

Parametric phase conjugation for the second harmonic of a nonlinear ultrasonic beam

The effect of phase conjugation for the second harmonic of a focused ultrasonic beam was investigated experimentally and by numerical simulation. An ultrasonic pulse with the carrier frequency f=3 MHz was emitted into water and focused at a point between the source and the phase conjugating system. The phase conjugation for the second harmonic of the incident wave (2f=6 MHz) was performed in a magnetostrictive ceramic as a result of the parametric interaction of the incident wave with the pumping magnetic field (the pumping frequency was f_p=4f=12 MHz). The axial and focal distributions of sound pressure in the incident and conjugated beams were measured using a broadband PVDF membrane hydrophone. The corresponding calculations were performed by solving numerically the Khokhlov-Zabolotskaya-Kuznetsov (KZK) equation allowing for the nonlinearity, diffraction, and thermoviscous absorption. The results of measurements agreed well with the calculations and showed that the field of a conjugate wave adequately reproduces the field of the second harmonic of the incident wave. A certain advantage of focusing with the phase conjugation for the second harmonic was demonstrated in comparison with the operation at the doubled frequency of the incident wave. The results of this study can serve as a basis for the utilization of the phase conjugation of harmonics in ultrasonic tomography and nondestructive testing.     

Multi-frequency harmonic arrays: initial experience with a novel transducer concept for nonlinear contrast imaging

Nonlinear contrast imaging modes such as second harmonic imaging (HI) and subharmonic imaging (SHI) are increasingly important for clinical applications. However, the performance of currently available transducers for HI and SHI is significantly constrained by their limited bandwidth. To bypass this constraint, a novel transducer concept termed multi-frequency harmonic transducer arrays (MFHA's) has been designed and a preliminary evaluation has been conducted. The MFHA may ultimately be used for broadband contrast enhanced HI and SHI with high dynamic range and consists of three multi-element piezo-composite sub-arrays (A-C) constructed so the center frequencies are 4f(A) = 2f(B) = f(C) (specifically 2.5/5.0/10.0 MHz and 1.75/3.5/7.0 MHz). In principle this enables SHI by transmitting on sub-array C receiving on B and, similarly, from B to A as well as HI by transmitting on A receiving on B and, likewise, from B to C. Initially transmit and receive pressure levels of the arrays were measured with the elements of each sub-array wired in parallel. Following contrast administration, preliminary in vitro HI and SHI signal-to-noise ratios of up to 40 dB were obtained. In conclusion, initial design and in vitro characterization of two MFHA's have been performed. They have an overall broad frequency bandwidth of at least two octaves. Due to the special design of the array assembly, the SNR for HI and SHI was comparable to that of regular B-mode and better than commercially available HI systems. However, further research on multi-element MFHA's is required before their potential for in vivo nonlinear contrast imaging can be assessed.     

Coded tissue harmonic imaging with nonlinear chirp signals

Coded tissue harmonic imaging with pulse inversion (CTHI-PI) based on a linear chirp signal can improve the signal-to-noise ratio with minimizing the peak range sidelobe level (PRSL), which is the main advantage over CTHI with bandpass filtering (CTHI-BF). However, the CTHI-PI technique could suffer from motion artifacts due to decreasing frame rate caused by two firings of opposite phase signals for each scanline. In this paper, a new CTHI method based on a nonlinear chirp signal (CTHI-NC) is presented, which can improve the separation of fundamental and harmonic components without sacrificing frame rate. The nonlinear chirp signal is designed to minimize the PRSL value by optimizing its frequency sweep rate and time duration. The performance of the CTHI-NC method was evaluated by measuring the PRSL and mainlobe width after compression. From the in vitro experiments, the CTHI-NC provided the PRSL of −40.6 dB and the mainlobe width of 2.1 μs for the transmit quadratic nonlinear chirp signal with the center frequency of 2.1 MHz, the fractional bandwidth at −6 dB of 0.6 and the time duration of 15 μs. These results indicate that the proposed method could be used for improving frame rates in CTHI while providing comparable image quality to CTHI-PI.     

Parameter optimization of pulse compression in ultrasound imaging systems with coded excitation

A linear array imaging system with coded excitation is considered, where the proposed excitation/compression scheme maximizes the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and minimizes sidelobes at the output of the compression filter. A pulse with linear frequency modulation (LFM) is used for coded excitation. The excitation/compression scheme is based on the fast digital mismatched filtering. The parameter optimization of the excitation/compression scheme includes (i) choice of an optimal filtering function for the mismatched filtering; (ii) choice of an optimal window function for tapering of the chirp amplitude; (iii) optimization of a chirp-to-transducer bandwidth ratio; (iv) choice of an appropriate n-bit quantizer. The simulation results show that the excitation/compression scheme can be implemented as a Dolph–Chebyshev filter including amplitude tapering of the chirp with a Lanczos window. An example of such an optimized system is given where the chirp bandwidth is chosen to be 2.5 times the transducer bandwidth and equals 6 MHz: The sidelobes are suppressed to −80 dB, for a central frequency of 4 MHz, and to −94 dB, for a central frequency of 8 MHz. The corresponding improvement of the SNR is 18 and 21 dB, respectively, when compared to a conventional short pulse imaging system. Simulation of B-mode images demonstrates the advantage of coded excitation systems of detecting regions with low contrast.     

Lorentz force electrical impedance tomography using pulse compression technique

Lorentz force electrical impedance tomography(LFEIT) combines ultrasound stimulation and electromagnetic field detection with the goal of creating a high contrast and high resolution hybrid imaging modality. In this study, pulse compression working together with a linearly frequency modulated ultrasound pulse was investigated in LFEIT. Experiments were done on agar phantoms having the same level of electrical conductivity as soft biological tissues. The results showed that:(i) LFEIT using pulse compression could detect the location of the electrical conductivity variations precisely;(ii)LFEIT using pulse compression could get the same performance of detecting electrical conductivity variations as the traditional LFEIT using high voltage narrow pulse but reduce the peak stimulating power to the transducer by 25.5 dB;(iii)axial resolution of 1 mm could be obtained using modulation frequency bandwidth 2 MHz.     

Steady-state free precession with hyperpolarized 3He: experiments and theory

The magnetization response of hyperpolarized 3He gas to a steady-state free precession (SSFP) sequence was simulated using matrix product operators. The simulations included the effects of flip angle (alpha), sequence timings, resonant frequency, gas diffusion coefficient, imaging gradients, T1 and T2. Experiments performed at 1.5 T, on gas phantoms and with healthy human subjects, confirm the predicted theory, and indicate increased SNR with SSFP through use of higher flip angles when compared to optimized spoiled gradient echo (SPGR). Simulations and experiments show some compromise to the SNR and some point spread function broadening at high alpha due to the incomplete refocusing of transverse magnetization, caused by diffusion dephasing from the readout gradient. Mixing of gas polarization levels by diffusion between slices is also identified as a source of signal loss in SSFP at higher alpha through incomplete refocusing. Nevertheless, in the sample experiments, a SSFP sequence with an optimized flip angle of alpha=20 degrees, and 128 sequential phase encoding views, showed a higher SNR when compared to SPGR (alpha=7.2 degrees) with the same bandwidth. Some of the gas sample experiments demonstrated a transient signal response that deviates from theory in the initial phase. This was identified as being caused by radiation damping interactions between the large initial transverse magnetization and the high quality factor (Q=250) birdcage resonator. In 3He NMR experiments, performed without imaging gradients, diffusion dephasing can be mitigated, and the effective T2 is relatively long (1 s). Under these circumstances the SSFP sequence behaves like a CPMG sequence with sinalpha/2 weighting of SNR. Experiments and simulations were also performed to characterize the off-resonance behaviour of the SSFP HP 3He signal. Characteristic banding artifacts due to off-resonance harmonic beating were observed in some of the in vivo SSFP images, for instance in axial slices close to the diaphragm where B0 inhomogeneity is highest. Despite these artifacts, a higher SNR was observed with SSFP in vivo when compared to the SPGR sequence. The trends predicted by theory of increasing SSFP SNR with increasing flip angle were observed in the range alpha=10-20 degrees without compromise to image quality through blurring caused by excessive k-space filtering.