ANALYSIS OF A PULSE-ECHO ULTRASOUND TAPERED PHASED ARRAY TRANSDUCER

The tapered phased array (TPA) transducer consists of a linear array of piezoelectric ceramic elements that are inherently broad-band because of their tapered thickness. In this paper, the TPA transducer operating in the pulsed mode will be examined to determine its potential for use in imaging applications. A TPA transducer was constructed in order to verify a theoretical model of its radiation pattern. The results of comparisons of the theoretical and experimental radiation patterns suggest that when the elements are pulsed with the appropriate signals, a linearly aligned group of focused beams at different frequencies will be produced. This group of focused beams can be used to provide a high-resolution two-dimensional phased array capability for a pulse-echo imaging system.