Analogue front ends for ultrasound
07 October 2008
Two eight-channel portable ultrasound receivers have been announced by Analog Devices.
Hospitals, medical clinics, and mobile emergency units increasingly rely on high-performance and portable ultrasound equipment for routine, preventative, and acute medical care. Therefore, ultrasound equipment designers must meet new demands for a balance between image quality and power efficiency.
Analog Devices, has announced two new eight-channel (octal) ultrasound receivers. The AD9272 claims to feature the industry’s lowest terminated noise for high and mid-end cart-based ultrasound equipment, and the AD9273 is, says the manufacturer, ‘the most power-efficient device in its class for addressing the requirements of portable ultrasound systems.’ The power dissipation is said to be less than 100mW per channel at 12bits and 40MSPS to extend portable ultrasound battery life.
These devices follow the AD9271 that was unveiled in April 2007 and was the first device to integrate a complete octal ultrasound receiver on a single chip. The AD927x offerings replace previous discrete solutions with a single integrated circuit that combines eight channels, each comprising a LNA (low-noise amplifier), a VGA (variable-gain amplifier), an AAF (anti-aliasing filter) and a 12bit ADC (analogue-to-digital converter). The AD9272 and AD9273 also feature a SPI (Serial Port Interface) that allows designers to further customise the noise and power performance for any given imaging mode, probe, or power requirement. By changing SPI registers, designers can optimise an ultrasound signal processing architecture for the best possible noise performance or longest battery life.
Both models feature a variable gain range of up to 42dB, a selection of anti-aliasing filter options, and pin-compatibility with other products in the ADI family. The AD9272 contains an ADC with a conversion rate of up to 80MSPS, and the AD9273 includes an ADC with a conversion rate of up to 50MSPS. The AD9271 features a variable gain range of 30dB and also includes an ADC with a conversion rate of up to 50MSPS.
The AD9272 and AD9273 were specifically designed to interface with the AD8339 quad programmable I/Q demodulator with phase shifter that is suited for CW Doppler ultrasound systems. The devices also complement ADI’s AD8021 low noise high-speed amplifiers; AD7980 16bit, 1MSPS PulSAR ADC, and ADR433 5.0V ultralow noise voltage reference. Both come in a 100-lead TQFP.
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