A piezoelectric polymer cavitation sensor installed in an emulsion generation microchannel device and an evaluation of cavitation state

In previous works, ultrasonic emulsification was realized using small microchannel devices oscillated by piezoelectric transducers. By using the devices, the emulsification in the flow process was also realized. In these devices, the driving frequency was higher than 2 MHz. This value is higher than the maximum audible field. On the other hand, the frequency is too high to utilize the cavitation effect. This is because the cavitation threshold depends on the frequency. The aim of this study is to confirm the cavitation state in the microchannel device using a piezoelectric polymer sensor. A micropatterned cavitation detection sensor has been fabricated by a photolithography technique and evaluated in a high-intensity ultrasound field. The emulsification state in the microchannel device has been evaluated using the fabricated sensor.