MRI Compatible 3-D Intracardiac Echography Catheter and System

A system for intracardiac imaging, comprising:

• an intracardiac echography catheter having an internal volume, a proximal end and a distal end, comprising:
• an atraumatic tip disposed on the distal end of the catheter;
• a CMUT on CMOS volumetric imaging chip disposed proximal of the tip, comprising:
• a plurality of CMUT transmit (“Tx”) elements transmitting an imaging pulse;
• a plurality of CMUT receive (“Rx”) elements, disposed in proximity to the plurality of Tx elements, receiving the imaging pulse, and each Rx element generating a receiver signal;
• and
• a plurality of electronics interfacing with the Tx elements and the Rx elements, comprising:
• a multiplexing component receiving at least half of the generated receiver signals simultaneously and reducing a number of output signals, based on the receiver signals, by a ratio between 15-to-1 and 50-to-1;
• and
• a beamforming component communicating with Tx elements;
• and
• a cable lumen disposed within the volume and configured to receive a plurality of output signal cables from the chip.