• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2016.02a
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• pp.377-377
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• 2016

Under nanosecond-pulsed laser irradiation, light-absorbing thin films have been used for photoacoustic transmitters for ultrasound generation. Especially, nanostructured absorbers are attractive due to high optical absorption and efficient thermoacoustic energy conversion: for example, 2-dimensional (2-D) gold nanostructure array, synthetic gold nanoparticles, carbon nanotubes (CNTs), and reduced graphene oxides. Among them, CNT has been used to fabricate a composite film with polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) that exhibits excellent photoacoustic conversion performance for high-frequency, high-amplitude ultrasound generation. Previously, CNT-PDMS nanocomposite films were made by using a high-temperature chemical vapor deposition (HTCVD) process for CNT growth. However, this approach is not suitable to fabricate large-area CNT films (>several cm2). This is because a chamber dimension of HTCVD is limited and also the process often causes nonuniform CNT growth when the film area increases. As an alternative approach, a solution-based process can be used to overcome these issues. We develop PDMS composite transmitters, based on the solution process, using several nanostructured light-absorbers such as CNTs, nanoink powders, and imprinted regular arrays of gold nanostructure. We compare fabrication processes of each composite transmitters and photoacoustic output performance.

• The Journal of the Acoustical Society of Korea
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• v.38 no.4
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• pp.467-475
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• 2019

A high-intensity ultrasound wave generates acoustic streaming and acoustic radiation forces when propagating through a medium. An acoustic radiation force generated in a three-dimensional space can produce a solid tactile sensation, delivering spatial information directly to the human skin. We placed 154 ultrasound transmit elements with a frequency of 40 kHz on a concave circular dish, and generated an acoustic radiation force at the focal point by transmitting the ultrasound wave. To feel the tactile sensation better, the transmit elements were excited by sine waves whose amplitude was modulated by a 60 Hz square wave. As an application of ultrasonic tactile sensing, a region where tactile sense is formed in the air is used as an indicator for the position of the hand. We confirmed the utility of ultrasonic tactile feedback by implementing a system that provides the number of fingers to a machine by receiving the shape of the hand at the focal point where the tactile sense is detected.

• The Journal of the Acoustical Society of Korea
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• v.42 no.5
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• pp.422-428
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• 2023

Ultrafast ultrasound imaging has been applied to various imaging approaches, including shear wave elastography, ultrafast Doppler, and super-resolution imaging. However, these methods are still challenging in real-time implementation for three Dimension (3D) or portable applications because of their massive data rate required. In this paper, we proposed an adaptive quantization method that effectively reduces the data rate of large Radio Frequency (RF) data. In soft tissue, ultrasound backscatter signals require a high dynamic range, and thus typical quantization used in the current systems uses the quantization level of 10 bits to 14 bits. To alleviate the quantization level to expand the application of ultrafast ultrasound imaging, this study proposed a depth-sectional quantization approach that reduces the quantization errors. For quantitative evaluation, Field II simulations, phantom experiments, and in vivo imaging were conducted and CNR, spatial resolution, and SSIM values were compared with the proposed method and fixed quantization method. We demonstrated that our proposed method is capable of effectively reducing the quantization level down to 3-bit while minimizing the image quality degradation.

• Journal of Korean Medicine Rehabilitation
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.167-184
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• 2023

Objectives This study was designed to assess the effectiveness of ultrasound therapy at the ST11 for regulation of sympathetic hyperactivity. Methods Forty healthy adult subjects were assigned to experimental group and control group. After taking mental stress, ultrasound therapy was applied at the ST11 in experimental group and sham-ultrasound therapy was applied in control group. The evaluation of sympathetic activity was measured by blood pressure, pulse rate, and heart rate variability at 3 times (Time 1: before the stress stimulation, Time 2: after the stress stimulation, Time 3: after the intervention). The primary end point was consisted of normalized (norm) low frequency (LF)/high frequency (HF) ratio, LF (norm), HF (norm). The secondary end point was consisted of systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, pulse rate, mean heart rate, standard deviation of NN intervals, root mean square of the successive differences, total power (log). Results After the stress stimulation, all subjects showed sympathetic hyperactivity. After the intervention, the experimental group showed lower sympathetic activity than the control group. Comparing the Time 3 and Time 1, the experimental group showed no significantly differences in sympathetic activity while the control group showed higher sympathetic activity in Time 3 than Time 1. Comparing the Time 3 and Time 2, the experimental group showed lower sympathetic activity in Time 3 than Time 2 while the control group showed higher sympathetic activity in Time 3 than Time 2. Conclusions We suggest that the ultrasound therapy at ST11 can decrease sympathetic activity in sympathetic hyperactivity condition.

• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.133-138
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• 1986

Abstract In a conventional digital sector scan system in the ultrasound medical imaging, the sampling space is in the polar coordinates while the display space is in the cartesian coordinates, which necessitates a coordinate transformation process resultion process resulting the overall system very complex and bulky. In this paper we propose a new architecture of the Digital-Scan-Converter (DSC) for the ultrasound sector scan system in which sampling space is the same as the display space, so the data are displayed as they are acquired without any interpola- tion process required. To implement the above real time DSC. two frequency synthesizes with very high switching time and a low-pass filter are required. The former determines the precise location of the data points and the latter fills the gap betw- een pixels in the horizontal direction.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Manufacturing Process Engineers
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• v.20 no.10
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• pp.63-71
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• 2021

Using fossil fuels in existing industrial systems causes a variety of social problems. Recently, many studies have been conducted on bio-refineries, which aim to actively utilize biomass to reduce the use of fossil fuels and solve various social problems. Among them, research using microalgae as a third-generation biomass has attracted considerable attention. Microalgae use inorganic matter to produce organic matter, and cell destruction is necessary to extract useful organic materials from microalgae. The extracted organic materials are currently used in various industrial fields. Numerous cell-destruction methods exist. We have investigated cell disruption by sonication, especially its efficiency. Ultrasound is a sound wave with frequencies above 20 kHz, and destroys cells by sending high energy through a cavitation that occurs, according to the characteristics of the sound wave. The Dunaliella salina microalgae used in this study was cultured in a flat-type photobioreactor. Experiments were performed using a batch low-frequency processing device. Logistic model was applied to analyze the results of cell-destruction experiments using ultrasound. The proper conditions for the most efficient cell destruction were OD 1.4(microalgae concentration)), 54watt(output power) and 200mL(microalgae capacity).

• Journal of radiological science and technology
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• v.46 no.4
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• pp.325-336
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• 2023

The purpose of this study was to analyze the structural relationship between job satisfaction levels felt during ultrasound examination of radiological technologists (RTs) using a structural equation model. The subjects were a total of 203 RTs currently working in medical institutions. The method was conducted as a survey study using a questionnaire consisting of a total of 29 questions consisting of demographic characteristics and job satisfaction levels that were self-efficacy, job competency, extrinsic compensation, and job satisfaction. The reliability was secured with the Cronbach's alpha coefficient of 0.6 or higher. For statistical analysis, a significant difference between the frequency analysis of demographic characteristics and the mean of the job satisfaction levels were performed by independent sample T-test and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) followed by Scheffe's post hoc test. The correlation analysis between variables was tested with Spearman's and Pearson's correlation coefficient. We analyzed the structural relationships between variables by structural equations. As a result, first, job competency and extrinsic compensation had a positive effect on job satisfaction on ultrasound examination of RTs. Second, the self-efficacy of ultrasound examination RTs showed a high correlation with job competency. Third, the job satisfaction levels showed in the order of job competency, job satisfaction, self-efficacy, and extrinsic compensation. In conclusion, this study are expected to be provided as data to identify factors that could improve job satisfaction during ultrasound examination of RTs by empirically analyzing the structural relationship of self-efficacy, job competency, and external compensation.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Nondestructive Testing
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• v.35 no.2
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• pp.112-119
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• 2015

Photoacoustic microscopy is capable of providing high-resolution molecular images, and its spatial resolution is typically determined by ultrasonic transducers used to receive the photoacoustic signals. Therefore, ultrasonic transducers for photoacoustic microscopy (PAM) should have a high operating frequency, broad bandwidth, and high signal-reception efficiency. Polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) is a suitable material. To take full advantage of this material, the selection of the backing material is crucial, as it influences the center frequency and bandwidth of the transducer. Therefore, we experimentally determined the most suitable backing material among EPO-TEK 301, E-Solder 3022, and RTV. For this, three PVDF high-frequency single-element transducers were fabricated with each backing material. The center frequency and -6 dB bandwidth of each transducer were ascertained by a pulse-echo test. The spatial resolution of each transducer was examined using wire-target images. The experimental results indicated that EPO-TEK 301 is the most suitable backing material for a PAM transducer. This material provides the highest signal magnitude and a reasonable bandwidth because a large portion of the energy propagates toward the front medium, and the PVDF resonates in the half-wave mode.

• The Journal of the Acoustical Society of Korea
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• v.37 no.4
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• pp.215-222
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• 2018

This paper reports the development and performance evaluation of a backend system for real-time IVUS (Intravascular Ultrasound) imaging. The developed backend system was designed to minimize the amount of logic and memory usage by means of efficient LUTs (Look-up Tables), and it was implemented in a single FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array) without using external memory. This makes it possible to implement the backend system that is less expensive, smaller, and lighter. The accuracy of the backend system implemented was evaluated by comparing the output of the FPGA with the result computed using a MATLAB program implemented in the same way as the VHDL (VHSIC Hardware Description Language) code. Based on the result of ex-vivo experiment using rabbit artery, the developed backend system was found to be suitable for real-time intravascular ultrasound imaging.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers A
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• v.26 no.11
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• pp.2322-2327
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• 2002

The corrosion degradation characteristics of the 12Cr alloy steel, which is widely used in fossil power plants as a turbine blade material, are evaluated nondestructively by use of the backward radiated Rayleigh surface wave. In order to evaluate corrosion degradation characteristics, we constructed automated system for the backward radiation, and the frequency dependency of the Rayleigh surface wave is investigated indirectly by measuring the angular dependency of the backward radiation of the incident ultrasonic wave in the specimens. The velocity of the surface wave decrease as the increase of the aging time in the backward radiation profile, which seems to result from the increase of the effective degrading layer thickness. And, amplitude of the surface wave increase as the aging time, which seems to result from the increase of the intergranular corrosion. The result observed in this study demonstrates high potential of the backward radiated ultrasound as a tool for the nondestructive evaluation of the corrosion degradation characteristics of the aged materials.