Adaptive Light Modulation for Improved Resolution and Efficiency in All-Optical Pulse-Echo Ultrasound

In biomedical all-optical pulse-echo ultrasound systems, ultrasound is generated with the photoacoustic effect by illuminating an optically absorbing structure with a temporally modulated light source. Nanosecond range laser pulses are typically used, which can yield bandwidths exceeding 100 MHz. However, acoustical attenuation within tissue or nonuniformities in the detector or source power spectra result in energy loss at the affected frequencies and in a reduced overall system efficiency. In this work, a laser diode is used to generate linear and nonlinear chirp optical modulations that are extended to microsecond time scales, with bandwidths constrained to the system sensitivity. Compared to those obtained using a 2-ns pulsed laser, pulse-echo images of a phantom obtained using linear chirp excitation exhibit similar axial resolution (99 versus 92 [Formula: see text], respectively) and signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs) (10.3 versus 9.6 dB). In addition, the axial point spread function (PSF) exhibits lower sidelobe levels in the case of chirp modulation. Using nonlinear (time-stretched) chirp excitations, where the nonlinearity is computed from measurements of the spectral sensitivity of the system, the power spectrum of the imaging system was flattened and its bandwidth broadened. Consequently, the PSF has a narrower axial extent and still lower sidelobe levels. Pulse-echo images acquired with time-stretched chirps as optical modulation have higher axial resolution (64 [Formula: see text]) than those obtained with linear chirps, at the expense of a lower SNR (6.8 dB). Using a linear or time-stretched chirp, the conversion efficiency from optical power to acoustical pressure improved by a factor of 70 or 61, respectively, compared to that obtained with pulsed excitation

Flexible and directional fibre optic ultrasound transmitters using photostable dyes

All-optical ultrasound transducers are well-suited for use in imaging during minimally invasive surgical procedures. This requires highly miniaturised and flexible devices. Here we present optical ultrasound transmitters for imaging applications based on modified optical fibre distal tips which allow for larger transmitter element sizes, whilst maintaining small diameter proximal optical fibre. Three optical ultrasound transmitter configurations were compared; a 400 µm core optical fibre, a 200 µm core optical fibre with a 400 µm core optical fibre distal tip, and a 200 µm core optical fibre with a 400 µm core capillary distal tip. All the transmitters used a polydimethylsiloxane-dye composite material for ultrasound generation. The material comprised a photostable infra-red absorbing dye to provide optical absorption for the ultrasound transduction. The generated ultrasound beam profile for the three transmitters was compared, demonstrating similar results, with lateral beam widths <1.7 mm at a depth of 10 mm. The composite material demonstrates a promising alternative to previously reported materials, generating ultrasound pressures exceeding 2 MPa, with corresponding bandwidths ca. 30 MHz. These highly flexible ultrasound transmitters can be readily incorporated into medical devices with small lateral dimensions

Real-time all-optical ultrasound imaging of a dynamic heart valve phantom

All-optical ultrasound imaging, in which ultrasound is generated and received using light, is well-suited to minimally invasive surgical procedures. Here we present a device that can provide real-time M-mode ultrasound images, and demonstrate its use imaging a dynamic heart valve phantom. This device, comprising two optical fibres, one with a graphene-polydimethylsiloxane composite coating for ultrasound generation, and a second with a concave Fabry-Perot cavity for ultrasound reception, had a diameter of 30 MHz) that enabled imaging with high axial resolution ( 2 cm). M-mode imaging with an A-line rate of 100 Hz was demonstrated on a heart valve phantom with realistic mitral valve motion. This work demonstrates the potential for all-optical ultrasound imaging to be used for guidance of intracardiac interventions

PDMS composites with photostable NIR dyes for multi-modal ultrasound imaging

All-optical ultrasound (OpUS) imaging has emerged as an imaging paradigm well-suited for minimally invasive surgical procedures. With this modality, ultrasound is generated when pulsed or modulated light is absorbed within a coating material. By engineering wavelength-selective coatings, complementary imaging and therapeutic modalities can be integrated with OpUS. Here, we present a wavelength-selective composite material comprising a near-infrared absorbing dye and polydimethylsiloxane. The optical absorption for this material peaked in the vicinity of 1064 nm, with up to 91% of incident light being absorbed, whilst maintaining lower optical absorption at other wavelengths. This material was used to generate ultrasound, demonstrating ultrasound pressures >1 MPa, consistent with those used for imaging applications. Crucially, long exposure photostability and device performance were found to be stable over a one hour period (peak pressure variation <10%), longer than required for standard clinical imaging applications

Adaptive All-Optical Ultrasound Imaging Through Temporal Modulation of Excitation Light

In this work, we demonstrate how the wide acoustic bandwidths generated by all-optical ultrasound imaging probes can be leveraged to dynamically trade-off image resolution with penetration depth. This dynamic trade-off was achieved through temporal modulation of the excitation light using bandwidth-limited linear chirps. The penetration depth of the all-optical ultrasound imaging probe used here could be arbitrarily set between 2 and 15 mm, to achieve inversely proportional spatial resolutions ranging from 128 - 500 μm (lateral)and 189 - 295 μn (axial). This added versatility in image parameters will enable seamless multi-scale ultrasound imaging that can strongly benefit interventional imaging

Robot-assisted Optical Ultrasound Scanning

Optical ultrasound, where ultrasound is both generated and received using light, can be integrated in very small diameter instruments making it ideally suited to minimally invasive interventions. One-dimensional information can be obtained using a single pair of optical fibres comprising of a source and detector but this can be difficult to interpret clinically. In this paper, we present a robotic-assisted scanning solution where a concentric tube robot manipulates an optical ultrasound probe along a consistent trajectory. A torque coil is utilised as a buffer between the curved nitinol tube and the probe to prevent torsion on the probe and maintain the axial orientation of the probe while the tube is rotating. The design and control of the scanning mechanism are presented along with the integration of the mechanism with a fibre-based imaging probe. Trajectory repeatability is assessed using electromagnetic tracking and a technique to calibrate the transformation between imaging and robot coordinates using a known model is presented. Finally, we show example images of 3D printed phantoms generated by collecting multiple OpUS A-scans within the same 3D scene to illustrate how robot-assisted scanning can expand the field of view

Optically Generated Ultrasound for Intracoronary Imaging

Conventional intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) devices use piezoelectric transducers to electrically generate and receive US. With this paradigm, there are numerous challenges that restrict improvements in image quality. First, with miniaturization of the transducers to reduce device size, it can be challenging to achieve the sensitivities and bandwidths required for large tissue penetration depths and high spatial resolution. Second, complexities associated with manufacturing miniaturized electronic transducers can have significant cost implications. Third, with increasing interest in molecular characterization of tissue in-vivo, it has been challenging to incorporate optical elements for multimodality imaging with photoacoustics (PA) or near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) whilst maintaining the lateral dimensions suitable for intracoronary imaging. Optical Ultrasound (OpUS) is a new paradigm for intracoronary imaging. US is generated at the surface of a fiber optic transducer via the photoacoustic effect. Pulsed or modulated light is absorbed in an engineered coating on the fiber surface and converted to thermal energy. The subsequent temperature rise leads to a pressure rise within the coating, which results in a propagating ultrasound wave. US reflections from imaged structures are received with optical interferometry. With OpUS, high bandwidths (31.5 MHz) and pressures (21.5 MPa) have enabled imaging with axial resolutions better than 50 μm and at depths >20 mm. These values challenge those of conventional 40 MHz IVUS technology and show great potential for future clinical application. Recently developed nanocomposite coating materials, that are highly transmissive at light wavelengths used for PA and NIRS light, can facilitate multimodality imaging, thereby enabling molecular characterization

Fiber optic photoacoustic probe with ultrasonic tracking for guiding minimally invasive procedures

In a wide range of clinical procedures, accurate placement of medical devices such as needles and catheters is critical to optimize patient outcomes. Ultrasound imaging is often used to guide minimally invasive procedures, as it can provide real-time visualization of patient anatomy and medical devices. However, this modality can provide low image contrast for soft tissues, and poor visualization of medical devices that are steeply angled with respect to the incoming ultrasound beams. Photoacoustic sensors can provide information about the spatial distributions of tissue chromophores that could be valuable for guiding minimally invasive procedures. In this study, a system for guiding minimally invasive procedures using photoacoustic sensing was developed. This system included a miniature photoacoustic probe with three optical fibers: one with a bare end for photoacoustic excitation of tissue, a second for photoacoustic excitation of an optically absorbing coating at the distal end to transmit ultrasound, and a third with a Fabry-Perot cavity at the distal end for receiving ultrasound. The position of the photoacoustic probe was determined with ultrasonic tracking, which involved transmitting pulses from a linear-array ultrasound imaging probe at the tissue surface, and receiving them with the fiber-optic ultrasound receiver in the photoacoustic probe. The axial resolution of photoacoustic sensing was better than 70 μm, and the tracking accuracy was better than 1 mm in both axial and lateral dimensions. By translating the photoacoustic probe, depth scans were obtained from different spatial positions, and two-dimensional images were reconstructed using a frequency-domain algorithm

Fiber-optic Ultrasound Transducers with Carbon/PDMS Composite Coatings

Novel ultrasound transducers were created with a composite of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) that was dip coated onto the end faces of optical fibers. The CNTs were functionalized with oleylamine to allow for their dissolution in xylene, a solvent of PDMS. Ultrasound pulses were generated by illuminating the composite coating with pulsed laser light. At distances of 2 to 16 mm from the end faces, ultrasound pressures ranged from 0.81 to 0.07 MPa and from 0.27 to 0.03 MPa with 105 and 200 μm core fibers, respectively. Using an optical fiber hydrophone positioned adjacent to the coated 200 µm core optical fiber, ultrasound reflectance measurements were obtained from the outer surface of a sheep heart ventricle. The results of this study suggest that ultrasound transducers that comprise optical fibers with CNT-PDMS composite coatings may be suitable for miniature medical imaging probes