Challenges and considerations of analog front-ends design for portable ultrasound systems

High performance portable ultrasound imaging system is demanded by a wide variety of point of care applications. Ultrasound system minimization and improvement have been proven in the past several years. One of the main driving forces for portable ultrasound system minimization and improvement is the advanced semiconductor technology. Besides, transducer technology is further enhancing system sensitivity and reducing system cost. Corresponding silicon processes were selected for achieving low power, low noise and compact size in ultrasound analog front-end (AFE) design. The combination of bipolar and CMOS processes achieves significant power, noise and size reduction, as well as superior CW performance. Key considerations of ultrasound analog front-end were discussed and analyzed. Standard test procedures were developed to assist the design.