Transparent ultrasonic transducers based on relaxor ferroelectric crystals for advanced photoacoustic imaging

Photoacoustic imaging is a promising non-invasive functional imaging modality for fundamental research and clinical diagnosis. However, achieving capillary-level resolution, wide field-of-view, and high frame rates remains challenging. To address this, we propose a transparent ultrasonic transducer design using our developed transparent Pb(In_1/2Nb_1/2)O₃-Pb(Mg_1/3Nb_2/3)O₃-PbTiO₃ crystals. Our fabrication technique incorporates quartz-glass-and-epoxy matching layers with low-resistance indium-tin-oxide electrodes through a brass-ring based structure, enabling a high frequency (28.5 MHz), wide bandwidth (78%), and enhanced pulse-echo sensitivity (2.5 V under 2-μJ pulse excitation). Our Pb(In_1/2Nb_1/2)O₃-Pb(Mg_1/3Nb_2/3)O₃-PbTiO₃-based transparent ultrasonic transducer demonstrates a four-fold enhancement in photoacoustic detection sensitivity when compared to the LiNbO₃-based counterpart, leading to a 13 dB improvement of signal-to-noise ratio in microvascular photoacoustic imaging. This enables dynamic monitoring of mouse cerebral cortex microvasculature during seizures at 0.8 Hz frame rates over a 1.5 × 1.5 mm² field-of-view. Our work paves the way for high-performance and compact photoacoustic imaging systems using advanced piezoelectric materials.