An Experimental Study of Real‐time Monitoring of Acoustic Output in High‐intensity Focused Ultrasound Using a PVDF Piezoelectric Sensor

The purpose of this study is to explore a technique to monitor the acoustic output in real‐time of a transducer used in high‐intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) treatment. A PVDF piezoelectric sensor was made and located at a specific position in acoustic field of a HIFU transducer. During operation of the transducer, an oscilloscope was used to detect the voltage output signal of the piezoelectric sensor. Results showed that the oscilloscope stably detected the voltage output of the sensor, which was relevant to the driving voltage of the transducer. That meant there was a correlation between the output voltage of the sensor and the acoustic power output from the transducer. It implies that the PVDF piezoelectric sensor can be used to monitor the real‐time acoustic output of the transducer and to assure safety and effectiveness of HIFU treatment.