Ultrasound transducer structure, manufacturing methods thereof, and ultrasound probe

An ultrasound probe, comprising:

• a housing;
• and
• an ultrasound transducer structure positioned inside the housing, the ultrasound transducer structure comprising:
• a single, continuous lens positioned at a peripheral portion of the housing;
• a single, continuous acoustic stack conductively coupled to the single, continuous lens along a vertical axis, the acoustic stack comprising an array of piezoelectric elements, where the array of piezoelectric elements comprises piezoceramics, high-dielectric ceramics, or single crystals;
• and
• an acoustic backing material bonded to a side of the acoustic stack facing away from the lens along the vertical axis, the acoustic backing material composed of a solidified blend of a backing polymer matrix, filler particles, and one or more stabilizers,
• wherein the ultrasound transducer structure includes no adhesives disposed between the acoustic stack and the acoustic backing material,
• the backing polymer matrix is formed from a thermoplastic, thermosetting polymer precursors, or a resin, and
• the lens is positioned at the peripheral portion of the housing through which ultrasound radiation is transmitted and received.

A method for manufacturing an ultrasound transducer structure, comprising:

• disposing an acoustic stack on a lens in a cavity of a mold;
• mixing one or more backing polymer materials, one or more fillers, and one or more additives to obtain a mixture;
• injecting the mixture into the cavity of the mold such that the mixture contacts a side of the acoustic stack facing away from the lens;
• solidifying the mixture to form an acoustic backing material bonded to the acoustic stack without adhesives;
• and
• separating the ultrasound transducer structure from the mold, wherein the mixture is a uniform density gradient of the one or more backing polymer materials, the one or more fillers, and the one or more additives.