Significant New Directions in Medical Ultrasound

Life Members

Refreshments: 3:30 PM
Talk: 4:00PM – 5:00PM

Thomas L. Szabo, Biomedical Engineering, Boston University, IEEE Life Senior Member

In the last decade, several remarkable technological developments have made possible new applications in medical ultrasound. Miniature phased arrays have been in use for over thirty years enabling real-time diagnostic ultrasound imaging of the body as well as the visualization of blood flow. New inventions and Moore’s law have made possible two-dimensional or matrix arrays for real-time imaging with thousands of elements. New piezoelectric single domain crystals with extraordinary bandwidth enable multiple frequency and harmonic operation. Shear wave elastography generates higher contrast images than before. Continued innovation produces pocket and wireless ultrasound which in turn are opening up new global applications and transforming the way ultrasound can be used. Therapeutic ultrasound is enabling knifeless surgery. Finally, reconfigurable ultrasound research systems with open software are spawning new applications and start-ups.

Dr. Thomas Szabo is a research professor in the biomedical engineering department , College of Engineering, Boston University. Previously he worked in research and development of diagnostic ultrasound imaging systems at Hewlett Packard and Agilent Technologies for nearly twenty years. Before that he did research on surface acoustic wave devices and ultrasonic nondestructive evaluation at Air Force Cambridge Research Laboratories/ Rome Air Development Center. Dr. Szabo is also a convenor of a working group in the International Electrotechnical Commission which develops standards on high intensity therapeutic ultrasound and focusing. He has published over one-hundred articles and book chapters. He is author of Diagnostic Ultrasound Imaging: Inside Out, a widely used textbook and reference which has been cited over 1000 times. Professor Szabo’s research goals are overcoming present limitations of imaging the body using ultrasound and other imaging modalities and finding new ways of extracting diagnostically useful information about tissue structure, health and function noninvasively.

The meeting will be held at the Lincoln Lab Cafeteria, 244 Wood Street, Lexington, MA at 4:00 PM.

Refreshments will be served at 3:30 PM. Registration is in the main lobby.

Foreign national visitors to Lincoln Lab require visit requests.

Please pre-register by e-mail to reception@ll.mit.edu and indicate your citizenship. Please use the Wood Street Gate. For directions go to http://www.ll.mit.edu/ For other information, contact Len Long at (781)894-3943, or l.long@ieee.org, Paul H. Carr 603 413 6566 paulcarr@alum.mit.edu