Phantoms are physical constructs used in procedure planning, training, medical imaging research, and machine calibration. Depending on the application, the material a phantom is made out of is very important. With ultrasound imaging, phantom materials used need to have similar acoustic properties, specifically speed of sound and attenuation, as a specified tissue. Phantoms used with needle insertion require a material with a similar tensile strength as tissue and, if possible, the ability to self heal increasing its overall lifespan. Soft polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and silicone were tested as possible needle insertion phantom materials. Acoustic characteristics were determined using a time of flight technique, where a pulse was passed through a sample contained in a water bath. The speed of sound and attenuation were both determined manually and through spectral analysis. Soft PVC was determined to have a speed of sound of approximately 1395 m/s and attenuation of 0.441 dB/cm (at 1 MHz). For the silicone mixture, the respective speed of sound values was within a range of 964.7 m/s and 1250.0 m/s with an attenuation of 0.547 dB/cm (at 1 MHz).

Date Published: 18 March 2015
PDF: 8 pages
Proc. SPIE 9412, Medical Imaging 2015: Physics of Medical Imaging, 94123G (18 March 2015); doi: 10.1117/12.2081449

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 9412:
Medical Imaging 2015: Physics of Medical Imaging
Christoph Hoeschen; Despina Kontos, Editor(s)