Efficient high voltage pulser for piezoelectric air coupled transducer

The design of high voltage pulser for air coupled ultrasound imaging is presented. It is dedicated for air-coupled ultrasound applications when piezoelectric transducer design is used. Two identical N-channel MOSFETs are used together with 1200 V high and low side driver IC. Simple driving pulses’ delay and skew circuit is used to reduce the cross-conduction. Analysis of switch peak current and channel resistance relation to maximum operation frequency and load capacitance is given. PSPICE simulation was used to analyze the gate driver resistance, gate pulse skew, pulse amplitude influence on energy consumption when loaded by capacitive load. Experimental investigation was verified against simulation and theoretical predictions. For 500 pF capacitance, which is most common for piezoelectric air coupled transducers, pulser consumes 650 μJ at 1 kV pulse and 4 μJ at 50 V. Pulser is capable to produce up to 1 MHz pulse trains with positive 50 V–1 kV pulses with up to 10 A peak output current. When loaded by 200 kHz transducer at 1 kV pulse amplitude rise time is 40 ns and fall time is 32 ns which fully satisfies desired 1 MHz bandwidth.     

基于飞秒光频梳的压电陶瓷闭环位移控制系统

利用飞秒光频梳、外腔可调谐半导体激光器和法布里-珀罗干涉仪建立了一套压电陶瓷亚纳米级闭环位移控制系统. 将可调谐半导体激光器锁定至光频梳, 通过精确调谐光频梳的重复频率, 实现了半导体激光器在其工作频率范围内的精密调谐. 利用Pound-Drever-Hall锁定技术将带有压电陶瓷的法布里-珀罗腔锁定至半导体激光器, 进而通过频率发生系统控制压电陶瓷产生亚纳米级分辨率的位移. 实验研究发现锁定至光频梳后可调谐半导体激光器1 s的Allan标准偏差为1.68×10^-12, 将其在30.9496 GHz范围内进行连续闭环调谐, 可获得压电陶瓷的位移行程约为4.8 μm; 以3.75 Hz的步长扫描光频梳的重复频率, 实现了压电陶瓷的450 pm闭环位移分辨率并测定了压电陶瓷的磁滞特性曲线. 该系统不存在非线性测量误差, 且激光频率及压电陶瓷位移均溯源至铷钟频率源. 关键词： 光频梳 压电陶瓷 法布里-珀罗腔 可调谐半导体激光器     

Development of a high-pulse-energy Q-switched Tm-doped double-clad fluoride fiber laser and its application to the pumping of mid-IR lasers

A diode-pumped Q-switched Tm-doped double-clad fluoride fiber laser is reported providing up to 90 microJ pulse energy (160 ns, 100 kHz, i.e., 9 W of average power). The dependence of the fiber laser's repetition rate on pump power and modulator repetition rate was investigated. By amplification even higher pulse energies of 410 microJ could be generated. In a second stage of the setup the Q-switched fiber laser serves as a pump for a gain-switched tunable Cr2+:ZnSe laser. The pulse energies reported are to the author's knowledge the highest generated by Tm-doped fluoride fiber lasers or amplifiers today.     

Compact 10-GHz Nd:GdVO4 laser with 0.5-W average output power and low timing jitter

We demonstrate a compact, diode-pumped Nd:GdVO4 laser with a repetition rate of 9.66 GHz and 0.5-W average output power. The laser is passively mode locked with a semiconductor saturable absorber mirror (SESAM), yielding 12-ps-long sech2-shaped pulses. For synchronization of the pulse train to an external reference clock, the SESAM is mounted on a piezoelectric transducer. With an electronic feedback loop of only a few kilohertz loop bandwidth we achieved a rms timing jitter of 146 fs (integrated from 10 Hz to 10 MHz). This is an upper limit because it is mostly limited by the measurement system. The laser setup with a simple linear cavity has a footprint of only 130 mm x 30 mm.     

重复频率直线变压器在长脉冲高功率源中的应用

在初级脉冲整形的基础上,利用快直线变压器技术,可以使长脉冲高功率微波驱动源的结构紧凑并实现模块化。为此着重分析了直线变压器的传输效率,研究了导致系统输出波形畸变的主要因素。通过工程实验,取得了功率数GW、重复频率25 Hz、前沿约40 ns、宽度约160 ns的长脉冲电子束流输出。     

Piezoelectric diaphragm for vibration energy harvesting

This paper presents a technique of electric energy generation using a mechanically excited unimorph piezoelectric membrane transducer. The electrical characteristics of the piezoelectric power generator are investigated under dynamic conditions. The electromechanical model of the generator is presented and used to predict its electrical performances. The experiments was performed with a piezoelectric actuator (shaker) moving a macroscopic 25 mm diameter piezoelectric membrane. A power of 0.65 mW was generated at the resonance frequency (1.71 kHz) across a 5.6 kOmega optimal resistor and for a 80 N force. A special electronic circuit has been conceived in order to increase the power harvested by the piezoelectric transducer. This electrical converter applies the SSHI (synchronized switch harvesting on inductor) technique, and leads to remarkable results: under the same actuation conditions the generated power reaches 1.7 mW, which is sufficient to supply a large range of low consumption sensors.     

20 GW紧凑Marx型重复频率脉冲驱动源研制进展

介绍了一种基于电触发技术的重复频率脉冲驱动源,其突破了双电容结构脉冲成形、紧凑型结构高压产生、大电流条件下重复频率稳定运行等关键技术,采用电路结构最简单的Marx电压叠加技术,解决了Marx在重复频率运行中的技术难点。脉冲功率驱动源设计输出功率20 GW、脉冲宽度180 ns、重复频率1~50 Hz,输出功率和重复频率在一定范围内可调。研制的脉冲功率驱动源体积仅2.5 m3,重量低至2.2 t,脉冲形成单元储能密度高达23 kJm-3,驱动源单次工作状态下输出功率约20 GW;在重复频率30 Hz工作状态下,输出功率16 GW、连续运行时间10 s、系统抖动约6 ns,系统运行稳定可靠。     

Characterization of a fiber-optic displacement sensor for measurements in high-intensity focused ultrasound fields

A fiber-optic sensor is presented that is capable of measuring the particle displacement in high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) fields. For this probe, a secondary calibration was performed, and the resulting complex frequency response is discussed. As a first practical application, the setup was used to measure the pressure in the field of a weakly focusing ultrasound transducer. The result is compared with that of a membrane hydrophone measurement. The feasibility of measurements in HIFU fields is demonstrated by means of measurements of the spatial distribution of the peak particle velocity within the focus of a HIFU transducer and of the dependence of the peak values on the acoustical power level.     

An improvement in the range resolution of ultrasonic pulse echo systems by deconvolution

Ultrasonic pulse echo systems are often limited in range resolution by the bandwidth of the piezoelectric transducer. Significant improvements in the range resolution of such systems can be obtained by minimizing the effects of the transducer's dynamic response on the overall pulse echo process. An approach to minimize the effects of the transducer is developed from linear system and impulse response techniques. In essence, the pulse echo voltage of interest is deconvolved with a pulse echo reference voltage which is obtained from an air/water interface in the nearfield of the transducer . A computer study of the pulse echo process and the deconvolution process is presented to illustrate the nature of the improvement in range resolution for several cases of interest. Finally, experimental results are presented to illustrate the improvement using commercially available transducers.     

High nonlinearities in Langevin transducer: a comprehensive model

The design and simulation of power transducers are difficult since piezoelectric, dielectric and elastic properties of ferroelectric materials differ from linear behavior when driven at large levels. This paper is devoted to modeling of a resonant power transducer at a high level of dynamic mechanical stress. The power transducer is subjected to a sine electrical field E of varying frequency which was considered as the excitation of the transducer.The mechanical equation of the piezoelectric element is written using electrostriction. The dielectric part is written as a nonlinear function of an equivalent electric field including stress influence (scaling relationship between electric field and mechanical stress). Using various simulations, we show then that typical resonance nonlinearities are obtained, such as jump phenomenon of transducer speed amplitude and phase, resonance peak that become asymmetric, and diminution of mechanical quality factor. As a consequence, we state that those typical nonlinearities are only due to dielectric nonlinearities, in good correlation with typical ferroelectric behavior. Moreover, this demonstrates the usefulness of scaling relationships in ferroelectrics, which explain static depoling under stress and butterfly strain hysteresis loop. The same scaling law gives here several nonlinearities for resonant transducers as well.     

On the signal-to-noise ratio enhancement of the Doppler process

The output signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the ultrasound Doppler process, with and without the commonly used sample and hold circuit, is calculated rigorously, and confirmed by experiment. On the basis of this result it is shown that the use of pulsed Doppler processing without increase of the transmitted power enhances the output SNR of a pulse-echo system observing moving particles by the factor f_rT_t, where f_r is the repetition rate of the pulse echo and Doppler systems and T_t is the transit time of the particles across the range cell. If nonlinear losses are significant, then changing to continuous Doppler operation and lowering the peak transmitted power to maintain the average power constant can produce additional improvement in SNR due to reduced non-linear losses in the transducer and the propagation medium, as well as reduced requirements for transducer damping.     

多模块快直线变压器高功率脉冲源的研究

阐述了利用快脉冲直线型变压器驱动源(FLTD)技术实现紧凑型高功率脉冲源的思想,分析了FLTD模块数量与系统输出品质之间的关系,通过改进馈电方式降低了对初级整形回路电感的要求,利用回程线圈削弱了波形畸变,通过工程实验,取得了重复频率25 Hz、平顶约80 ns、电子能量近0.8 MeV的束流输出,为重复频率、紧凑型、模块化高功率脉冲源的研制提供了新思路. 关键词： 紧凑 快直线变压器 模块化 高功率脉冲源     

Study of intrinsic localized vibrational modes in micromechanical oscillator arrays

Intrinsic localized modes (ILMs) have been observed in micromechanical cantilever arrays, and their creation, locking, interaction, and relaxation dynamics in the presence of a driver have been studied. The micromechanical array is fabricated in a 300 nm thick silicon-nitride film on a silicon substrate, and consists of up to 248 cantilevers of two alternating lengths. To observe the ILMs in this experimental system a line-shaped laser beam is focused on the 1D cantilever array, and the reflected beam is captured with a fast charge coupled device camera. The array is driven near its highest frequency mode with a piezoelectric transducer. Numerical simulations of the nonlinear Klein-Gordon lattice have been carried out to assist with the detailed interpretation of the experimental results. These include pinning and locking of the ILMs when the driver is on, collisions between ILMs, low frequency excitation modes of the locked ILMs and their relaxation behavior after the driver is turned off.     

压电MEMS超声换能器研究进展

MEMS(micro-electromechanical systems)超声换能器(MEMS ultrasonic transducer,简称MUT)是采用微电子和微机械加工技术制作的新型超声换能器。与传统超声换能器相比,MUT具有体积小、重量轻、成本低、功耗低、可靠性高、频率控制灵活、频带宽、灵敏度高以及易于与电路集成和实现智能化等特点。是超声换能器的重要的研究方向之一。MUT的研究主要包括压电MUT(piezoelectric MUT,简称PMUT)和电容MUT(capacitiveMUT,简称CMUT)两个方面。本文概述了PMUT研究的发展进程和研究成果,展望了PMUT的研究和应用前景。     

电容MEMS超声换能器研究进展

MEMS(micro-electromechanical systems)超声换能器(MEMS ultrasonic transducer,简称MUT)是采用微电子和微机械加工技术制作的新型超声换能器。与传统超声换能器相比,MUT具有体积小、重量轻、成本低、功耗低、可靠性高、频率控制灵活、频带宽、灵敏度高以及易于与电路集成和实现智能化等特点。是超声换能器的重要的研究方向之一。MUT的研究主要包括压电MUT(piezoelectric MUT,简称PMUT)和电容MUT(capacitiveMUT,简称CMUT)两个方面。本文概述了CMUT研究的发展进程和研究成果,展望了CMUT的研究和应用前景。     

Application of piezoelectric transient response in transducer acoustic power measurement

To explore a more convenient method for measuring the focused ultrasound power,a piezoelectric ceramic plate was used to receive ultrasonic signal directly.Due to an acoustic force acts on the surface of piezoelectric ceramic plate,the piezoelectric response was obtained by means of electromechanical analogy,which was composed of voltage response caused by forced vibration and high frequency attenuation response caused by natural vibration.The conversion relationship between output signal of piezoelectric ceramic plate and acoustic power of transducer was analyzed.The envelope of output piezoelectric signal was extracted in twice,and a voltage amplitude curve with sinusoidal distribution that could describe the changes of acoustic power was obtained.Under different drive voltage of transducer,the maximum peak voltage of envelope curve was found respectively.Their squared values were made a linear fitting with acoustic power measured by acoustic power meter,and then the proportional coefficient of theoretical relational expression was calibrated.The experimental results are in good agreement with the theory.The relative error between calibrated theoretical acoustic power and that measured by acoustic power meter was less than 8.7%.The paper can provide a guideline for measuring acoustic power of transducer by using piezoelectric signal.     

Controlled cell aggregation in a pulsed acoustic field

Cell aggregation in ultrasonic resonators can be obtained in a few seconds. Hundreds even thousands of cells can be levitated in suspension and generate 2D or 3D aggregates. Nevertheless, the aggregation rate and the 2D or 3D configurations of the resultant aggregates are very difficult to control. This work reports on a novel way of generating and controlling particle and cell aggregates using pulsed ultrasound. This technique specifically explores (in addition to the ultrasound wave, frequency and amplitude) the time of ultrasound application, i.e. the number of pulses as well as the pulse repetition frequency. We demonstrate that with pulsed ultrasound, particles and/or cells levitate in suspension, as with continuous ultrasound, and the aggregation rate can be modified in a controlled manner. By carefully tuning the number of pulses and the repetition frequency, the 3-D and 2-D configurations of the aggregates can be selectively generated. In addition, pulsed ultrasound limits transducer heating, thus allowing for higher acoustic energies than those currently employed with continuous ultrasound.     

100 W全光纤声光调Q光纤激光器实验研究

 报道了一台全光纤结构主振荡功率放大(MOPA)型掺镱脉冲光纤激光器,以光纤光栅为腔镜,光纤型声光调Q的光纤激光器为种子源,通过两级掺镱双包层光纤放大器实现功率放大。对声光调Q的光纤激光器输出特性进行了研究,比较了不同泵浦波长、不同重复频率对激光输出功率和脉冲宽度的影响,并实现了最短脉冲宽度25 ns、单脉冲能量45 μJ的脉冲激光输出。在重复频率50 kHz时,对脉冲宽度130 ns、平均功率0.6 W的种子光进行放大,得到了平均功率102.5 W、脉冲宽度约240 ns的激光输出。     

LD-pumped actively Q-switched Tm,Ho:YLF laser at room temperature

We have investigated acoustic-optical Q-switched Tm,Ho:YLF laser end-pumped by a laser-diode. At room temperature, a 2.067 μm wavelength pulsed output is realized. Average output power, single pulse energy and pulse-width are measured at different incident pump powers and pulse repetition frequencies. When the incident pump power is 2.8 W, a maximum average output power of 189 mW is obtained at the repetition frequency of 9 kHz, and this corresponds to an optical conversion efficiency of 6.8%. The maximum single pulse energy of 65μJ, the shortest pulse-width with full-width at half-maximum (FWHM) of 138 ns and the maximum peak power of 470 W are obtained at the pulse repetition frequency of 1 kHz.     

Record low-power all-optical semiconductor switch operation at ultrafast repetition rates above the carrier cutoff frequency

The switch repetition-rate limit of all-optical semiconductor switches, for which the dynamic extinction ratio decreases with increasing repetition rate, is examined and overcome. The extinction ratio is improved by optimization of the interferometer phase bias, which has previously been set to pi. The extinction-ratio increase accompanies a drastic change in the output pulse spectrum. Both the output pulse profiles and the spectra, before and after optimization, are successfully reproduced by simulation. As a result, switch repetition of 42 GHz (2.5 times higher than the semiconductor-carrier cutoff frequency) is achieved by use of 5-ps, 1548-nm pump pulses. What are believed to be record low input pump-pulse energies of 750 aJ (peak power, 140microW) at 10 GHz and 6 fJ (1.1 mW) at 42 GHz are used.