Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Date of Award

2013

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

M.S. in Physics

Department

Physics and Astronomy

First Advisor

Joel Mobley

Second Advisor

Charles Church

Third Advisor

Cecille Labuda

Relational Format

dissertation/thesis

Abstract

Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is a comcategory of brain injuries, which contributes to a substantial number of deaths and permanent disability all over the world. Ultrasound technology plays a major role in tissue characterization due to its low cost and portability that could be used to bridge a wide gap in the TBI diagnostic process. This research addresses the ultrasonic properties of mammalian brain tissues focusing on backscatter and attenuation. Orientation dependence and spatial averaging of data were analyzed using the same method resulting from insertion of tissue sample between a transducer and a reference reflector. Apparent Backscatter Transfer Function (ABTF) at 1 to 10 mhz, attenuation coefficient and Backscatter Coefficient (BSC) at 1 to 5 mhz frequency ranges were measured on ovine brain tissue samples. The resulting ABTF was a monotonically decreasing function of frequency and the attenuation coefficient and BSC generally were increasing functions of frequency, results consistent with other soft tissues such as liver, blood and heart.

Included in

Physics Commons

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