Computerized Anal Sis Of Hi:H Resolution Ima:Es By Scannin Acoustic Microscopy

High resolution scanning reflection acoustic microscopy is a new scanning technique which provides information about the local elastic properties (both at the surface and in depth) of various kinds of objects. In the present work, two applications of the scanning system (Leitz ELSAM microscope, frequency range: 0.8-2.0 GHz) are considered. The first is the characterization of the adhesion of mouse neuroblastoma cells to a silicon substratum: rings of alternate intensities, originated by acoustic interference fringes, and shown in the cell image, are utilized to obtain information about cell morphology. In the second application, instead, acoustic microscopy is proposed as a non-destructive, inexpensive, and fast technique for characterizing semiconductor devices. The work is focused on the low-level processing (filtering, segmentation, and feature extraction) of the resulting acoustic images, to restore the original information and to measure several features useful in characterizing and understanding an object. The final goal is to determine the acoustic impedance and the acoustic attenuation of the object considered, and, in the case of living cells, to monitor them in time.