| 摘要 |
An ultrasonic transducer, method, and system are disclosed for performing ultrasonic harmonic imaging in a medium or a living body. The ultrasonic transducer consists of a linear array of alternating long and short elements. A first set of transducer elements is for transmitting and receiving at a fundamental frequency, and a second set of transducer elements is for receiving second harmonic or subharmonic echoes, each set operating at their respective center frequencies. This dual-frequency ultrasonic transducer is coupled to an ultrasound system wherein transmit beamforming is done at the fundamental frequency, and receive beamforming is done at the second harmonic or subharmonic frequency. When receive beamforming at the fundamental frequency is added, the method enables parallel fundamental, harmonic, compound, and difference imaging. These methods may be utilized to improve ultrasonic harmonic imaging of hard-to-image patients by optimizing the transmission of fundamental-frequency ultrasound beams and the receiving of second harmonic or subharmonic echoes, while minimizing harmonic distortion and signal losses.
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