Phased array

Last revised by Andrew Murphy on 31 Mar 2020

Citation, DOI, disclosures and article data

Citation:

Nightingale R, Murphy A, Knipe H, et al. Phased array. Reference article, Radiopaedia.org (Accessed on 19 Apr 2024) https://doi.org/10.53347/rID-54643

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.53347/rID-54643

Permalink:

https://radiopaedia.org/articles/54643

rID:

54643

Article created:

22 Jul 2017, Rachael Nightingale

Disclosures:

At the time the article was created Rachael Nightingale had no recorded disclosures.

View Rachael Nightingale's current disclosures

Last revised:

31 Mar 2020, Andrew Murphy ◉

Disclosures:

At the time the article was last revised Andrew Murphy had no recorded disclosures.

View Andrew Murphy's current disclosures

Revisions:

8 times, by 6 contributors - see full revision history and disclosures

Sections:

Imaging Technology

Tags:

cases, refs

Synonyms:

Phased arrays

A phased array ultrasound transducer is typically 2-3 cm long, consisting of 64-128 elements. It is a smaller assembly than a sequential array and can be either linear or curvilinear.

A sector field of view is produced by all elements firing to create a single waveform. Small delays in element firing allow for electronic field steering and focusing without moving the ultrasound probe. All elements will be fired multiple times with different degrees of steering to create an image. Echoes are detected by all elements and entered into an algorithm to form the image.

Line density decreases at the bottom of the image. The sensitivity of the image reduces at extremes of steering and lateral resolution is best in the centre of the field of view due to a larger effective aperture.

The benefits of a phased array include; a small faced transducer allowing for imaging in small spaces and being able to change the focus of the ultrasound beam.