Spherical Waves and Sound Beam Convergence - Video Lesson

Hey, everybody. Welcome back to our series on the physics of sonography. This lesson will focus on how ultrasound waves propagate and interact to form the ultrasound beam. Specifically, we'll explore the formation of spherical waves, the role of wave interference, and how beam convergence impacts image resolution. Understanding these principles is essential for optimizing ultrasound imaging and achieving high quality diagnostic images. Ultrasound waves do not originate as a single uniform wave, but rather as a collection of distinct spherical waves generated by small sound sources known as wavelets. According to Wiegand's principle, each point on a wavefront acts as a secondary source of new wavelets that propagate outward in a spherical manner. These wavelets then interact constructively and destructively to form the combined ultrasound beam used for imaging. In diagnostic ultrasound, the piezoelectric