A practical and highly accurate method of estimation of the frequency-dependent slope of the acoustic attenuation coefficient, α1, using backscattered ultrasound energy is presented. The influence or the focused ultrasound beam is experimentally measured and a simple method for incorporating the field effects in the estimate of α1 is described. The accuracy of the estimate of α1in vitro which appears to be of the order of 10 percent, demonstrates the feasibility of in vivo applications of the technique.
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