What structural design feature characterizes the piezoelectric element of ultrasound transducers?

• A. Circular coils
• B. Layered plates
• C. Strip sections
• D. Woven fibers

Answer: (C)

The piezoelectric element is designed as narrow strip sections forming an array. To create an ultrasound beam with good control over direction and focus, the active piezoelectric material is subdivided into multiple small strips (separated by kerfs). Each strip acts as an individual radiator that can be driven with its own electrical phase and amplitude, allowing beam steering, focusing, and better lateral resolution. This strip-array configuration is the defining feature of the piezoelectric element in many transducers.

Other options don’t match this key design: circular coils are magnetic/inductive, not piezoelectric; layered plates describe the broader construction of the transducer stack but not the specific piezoelectric element geometry; woven fibers aren’t used to form the active piezoelectric radiator.