Photons Plus Ultrasound: Imaging and Sensing 2012, v.8223
Abstract
We have developed a 2.5-mm outer diameter photoacoustic endoscopic mini-probe to use in the instrument channel (typically 2.8 or 3.7 mm in diameter) of standard video endoscopes. To achieve adequate signal sensitivity, we fabricated a focused ultrasonic transducer using a highly-sensitive PMN-PT piezoelectric material. We quantified the PMN-PT transducer's operating parameters and validated the mini-probe's endoscopic imaging capability through an ex vivo imaging experiment on a rat colon.