Monitoring infant brain perfusion by trans-fontanel echography

1. A 125μm-Pitch-Matched Transceiver ASIC with Micro-Beamforming ADC and Multi-Level Signaling for 3-D Transfontanelle Ultrasonography
   Peng Guo; Fabian Fool; Zu-Yao Chang; Emile Noothout; Hendrik J. Vos; Johan G. Bosch; Nico de Jong; Martin D. Verweij; Michiel A. P. Pertijs;
   IEEE Journal of Solid-State Circuits,
   Volume 59, Issue 8, pp. 2604--2617, August 2024. DOI: 10.1109/JSSC.2024.3355854
   
   Abstract: ...

   This article presents a pitch-matched transceiver application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) for a wearable ultrasound device intended for transfontanelle ultrasonography, which includes element-level 20-V unipolar pulsers with transmit (TX) beamforming, and receive (RX) circuitry that combines eightfold multiplexing, four-channel micro-beamforming (μBF), and subgroup-level digitization to achieve an initial 32-fold channel-count reduction. The μBF is based on passive boxcar integration, merged with a 10-bit 40 MS/s SAR ADC in the charge domain, thus obviating the need for explicit anti-alias filtering (AAF) and power-hungry ADC drivers. A compact and low-power reference generator employs an area-efficient MOS capacitor as a reservoir to quickly set a reference for the ADC in the charge domain. A low-power multi-level data link, based on 16-level pulse-amplitude modulation, concatenates the outputs of four ADCs, providing an overall 128-fold channel-count reduction. A prototype transceiver ASIC was fabricated in a 180-nm BCD technology, and interfaces with a 2-D PZT transducer array of 16×16 elements with a pitch of 125 μm and a center frequency of 9 MHz. The ASIC consumes 1.83 mW/element. The data link achieves an aggregate 3.84 Gb/s data rate with 3.3 pJ/bit energy efficiency. The ASIC’s functionality has been demonstrated through electrical, acoustic, and imaging experiments.

2. Pitch-Matched Integrated Circuits for Ultrasound Transducer Arrays
   Pertijs, Michiel; Hopf, Yannick; Guo, Peng;
   In Imaging Sensors, Power Management, PLLs and Frequency Synthesizers ‐ Advances in Analog Circuit Design,
   Springer Science \& Business Media, December 2024. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-031-71559-4_1
   
   Abstract: ...

   While medical imaging using ultrasound is an established field, technical advances are enabling a range of new-use cases and associated new ultrasound imaging devices. Examples include catheters capable of providing real-time 3D images to guide minimally invasive interventions and wearable devices for new monitoring and diagnostic applications. In contrast with conventional probes, which contain little or no electronics, these new devices need to become “smart”: integrated circuits need to be integrated into the probe to interface in a pitch-matched fashion with the many transducer elements (typically 1000+) needed for real-time 3D imaging. This chapter discusses the challenges associated with the design of such pitch-matched integrated circuits, focusing on strategies for channel-count reduction, beamforming, and digitization. The chapter includes a case study of a state-of-the-art catheter-based design for high-frame-rate 3D intracardiac imaging.

3. A Pitch-matched Low-noise Analog Front-end with Accurate Continuous Time-gain Compensation for High-density Ultrasound Transducer Arrays
   Peng Guo; Zu-Yao Chang; Emile Noothout; Hendrik J. Vos; Johan G. Bosch; Nico de Jong; Martin D. Verweij; Michiel A. P. Pertijs;
   IEEE Journal of Solid-State Circuits,
   Volume 58, Issue 6, pp. 1693--1705, June 2023. DOI: 10.1109/jssc.2022.3200160

4. A 1.2 mW/Channel Pitch-Matched Transceiver ASIC Employing a Boxcar-Integration-Based RX Micro-Beamformer for High-Resolution 3-D Ultrasound Imaging
   Peng Guo; Fabian Fool; Zu-Yao Chang; Emile Noothout; Hendrik J. Vos; Johan G. Bosch; Nico de Jong; Martin D. Verweij; Michiel A. P. Pertijs;
   IEEE Journal of Solid-State Circuits,
   Volume 58, Issue 9, pp. 2607--2618, September 2023. DOI: 10.1109/jssc.2023.3271270

5. Pitch-Matched Integrated Circuits for Ultrasound Transducer Arrays
   Y. Hopf; P. Guo; M. Pertijs;
   In Proc. Workshop on Advances in Analog Circuit Design (AACD),
   April 2023. invited presentation.

6. A Pitch-Matched Transceiver ASIC for 3D Ultrasonography with Micro-Beamforming ADCs based on Passive Boxcar Integration and a Multi-Level Datalink
   Guo, P.; Chang, Z. Y.; Noothout, E.; Vos, H. J.; Bosch, J. G.; de Jong, N.; Verweij, M. D.; Pertijs, M. A. P.;
   In Dig. Techn. Paper IEEE Symposium on VLSI Circuits (VLSI),
   IEEE, IEEE, pp. 1-2, June 2023. DOI: 10.23919/VLSITechnologyandCir57934.2023.10185159

7. A 1.2mW/channel 100μm-Pitch-Matched Transceiver ASIC with Boxcar-Integration-Based RX Micro-Beamformer for High-Resolution 3D Ultrasound Imaging
   P. Guo; F. Fool; E. Noothout; Z. Y. Chang; H. J. Vos; J. G. Bosch; M. D. Verweij; N. de Jong; M. A. P. Pertijs;
   In Dig. Techn. Papers IEEE International Solid-State Circuits Conference (ISSCC),
   February 2022. DOI: 10.1109/ISSCC42614.2022.9731784

8. Integrated Transceivers for Emerging Medical Ultrasound Imaging Devices: A Review
   C. Chen; M. Pertijs;
   IEEE Open Journal of the Solid-State Circuits Society,
   Volume 1, pp. 104-114, September 2021. DOI: 10.1109/OJSSCS.2021.3115398

9. A Pitch-Matched Analog Front-End with Continuous Time-Gain Compensation for High-Density Ultrasound Transducer Arrays
   P. Guo; Z. Y. Chang; E. Noothout; H. J. Vos; J. Bosch; N. de Jong; M. D. Verweij; M. A. P. Pertijs;
   In Proc. European Solid-State Circuits Conference (ESSCIRC),
   pp. 163-166, September 2021.
   
   Abstract: ...

   This paper presents a compact programmable high-voltage (HV) pulser for ultrasound imaging, designed for driving capacitive micro-machined ultrasonic transducers (CMUTs) in miniature ultrasound probes. To enable bipolar return-to-zero pulsing and embedded transmit/receive switching, a compact back-to-back isolating HV switch is proposed that employs HV floating-gate drivers with only one HV MOS transistor each. The pulser can be digitally programmed to generate bipolar pulses with and without return-to-zero, with a peak-to-peak swing up to 60 V, as well as negative and positive unipolar pulses. It can generate bursts of up to 63 pulses, with a maximum pulse frequency of 9 MHz for an 18 pF transducer capacitance. Realized in TSMC 0.18 μm HV BCD technology, the pulser occupies only 0.167 mm2. Electrical characterization results of the pulser, as well as acoustic results obtained in combination with a 7.5-MHz CMUT transducer, are presented.

10. An Area-Efficient Continuous Time-Gain Compensation Amplifier for Ultrasound Application
    P. Guo; Z.Y. Chang; E. Noothout; H.J. Vos; J.G. Bosch; N. de Jong; M.D. Verweij; M.A.P. Pertijs;
    In Annual Workshop on Circuits, Systems and Signal Processing (ProRISC),
    July 2021. poster.

11. Monitoring infant brain perfusion by trans-fontanel echography
    A. J. Kortenbout; H. J. Vos; J. Dudink; M. D. Verweij; M. A. P. Pertijs; J. G. Bosch; N. de Jong;
    In Proc. PhD Training Course Dutch Heart Foundation,
    October 2018.

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