Review of Piezoelectric Micromachined Ultrasonic Transducers for Rangefinders

Piezoelectric micromachined ultrasonic transducer (pMUT) rangefinders have been rapidly developed in the last decade. With high output pressure to enable long-range detection and low power consumption (16 mu W for over 1 m range detection has been reported), pMUT rangefinders have drawn extensive attention to mobile range-finding. pMUT rangefinders with different strategies to enhance range-finding performance have been developed, including the utilization of pMUT arrays, advanced device structures, and novel piezoelectric materials, and the improvements of range-finding methods. This work briefly introduces the working principle of pMUT rangefinders and then provides an extensive overview of recent advancements that improve the performance of pMUT rangefinders, including advanced pMUT devices and range-finding methods used in pMUT rangefinder systems. Finally, several derivative systems of pMUT rangefinders enabling pMUT rangefinders for broader applications are presented.

Automated summary

In the last decade, piezoelectric micromachined ultrasonic transducer (pMUT) rangefinders have experienced rapid development. These rangefinders have attracted extensive attention for mobile range-finding due to their high output pressure for long-range detection and low power consumption (16 µW for over 1 m range detection has been reported). Various strategies, including the utilization of pMUT arrays, advanced device structures, and novel piezoelectric materials, as well as improvements in range-finding methods, have been developed to enhance the performance of pMUT rangefinders. This work provides a brief introduction to the working principle of pMUT rangefinders, followed by an extensive overview of recent advancements that improve their performance, including advanced pMUT devices and range-finding methods used in pMUT rangefinder systems. Additionally, several derivative systems of pMUT rangefinders enabling broader applications are presented.