Scanning tomographic acoustic microscopy using shear waves

We propose to use shear waves instead of longitudinal waves in a novel scanning tomographic acoustic microscope (STAM) in which the specimens are solid. When a specimen with a shear modulus is immersed in the microscope's water bath, mode conversion takes place at the water-solid interface. The shear wave energy is detectable and can be used for image reconstruction. Although wave transmission in most solid specimens is limited to about 20 degrees for longitudinal waves, it is about twice that for shear waves. Also, velocities of shear waves are lower than those of longitudinal waves and hence the wavelengths at the same frequency are smaller. For these and other reasons we can expect that for many specimens the resolution of a shear-wave STAM to be substantially better than that of a longitudinal-wave STAM. We use computer simulation in order to compare the operation of a shear-wave STAM with that of the conventional longitudinal-wave STAM. We have simulated tomographic reconstruction for each. The corresponding critical angles of incidence are computed and tomographic reconstructions of a particular solid specimen is obtained by using the back-and-forth propagation algorithm (BFP). Our simulation results show that shear-wave STAM has better resolution than longitudinal-wave STAM.     

Electromagnetic waves generated by opposite acoustic waves

An acoustic wave of a combined frequency (formed upon the superposition of the opposite acoustic waves of close frequencies) from a moving source generates electromagnetic waves of the same frequency with the amplitude increasing in the longitudinal direction. The problem is solved for the first time, assuming the absence of electric charges and neglecting the frequency dispersion. It is shown that the running acoustic wave is accompanied by weak electromagnetic waves. This effect may find new applications, in particular, in the space energetic.     

Debye representation of dispersive focused waves

We report a matrix-based diffraction integral that evaluates the focal field of any diffraction-limited axisymmetric complex system in the paraxial regime. This diffraction formula is a generalization of the Debye integral, here accommodated to broadband problems. The Fresnel number is reformulated to guarantee that the focal region is entirely within the region of validity of the Debye approximation when this parameter largely exceeds unity. Several examples are examined in detail, one of them exhibiting in-focal-plane compensation of the spatial dispersion. This simple formalism opens the door for the analysis and design of focused beams with arbitrary angular dispersion.     

Wideband acoustic microscopy of tissue

A scanning acoustic microscope (SAM) has been used to measure the elastic properties of tissue with a resolution of around 8 mum. This is achieved by broadband excitation of the acoustic lens, and the recording of an undemodulated returning signal. A method of analyzing this information to yield sound velocity, acoustic impedance, section thickness, and acoustic attenuation is described. Results from a sample of skin tissue are presented and compared with data from a computer simulation of the experiment.     

Propagation of nonlinear acoustic waves in gallium

We study nonlinear phenomena which occur during strong sound signal propagation in superpure Ga and are due to the perturbation of the electron subsystem in the metal. Although the observations are in qualitative agreement with theoretical concepts in a number of aspects, there are effects which still lack adequate theoretical interpretation, in particular, an oscillatory dependence of the harmonic amplitudes on magnetic field which is linear with respect toH ^1/2, and appreciable nonlinear distortions of the sound pulse envelope accompanied by the acoustic noise generation.     

Hybridization of acoustic waves in piezoelectric plates

The conditions for hybridization of the zero-order and high-order acoustic waves propagating in a piezoelectric crystal plate have been studied. The dependence of the phase velocity of the hybrid waves on the parameter hf (h is the plate thickness and f is the wave frequency) is established for the potassium niobate and lithium niobate plates possessing various crystallographic orientations and conductivities. It is found that hybridization takes place when the conductivity of a thin surface layer exceeds a certain critical value, which can vary within broad limits depending on the plate material and orientation. The degree of dispersive repulsion of the coupled modes grows with increasing electromechanical coupling coefficient.     

Ultrafast generation of acoustic waves in copper

The ultrafast generation of acoustic waves in copper films is investigated with a femtosecond optical pump and probe technique. By studying the generation at times before the electrons and the lattice come into equilibrium, the strength of their interaction can be measured and the dynamics of ultrafast electron diffusion can be studied. The acoustic strain pulses observed are bipolar in shape with exponential tails that are much broader than expected from simple thermoelastic stress generation. This can be explained by the supersonic diffusion of electrons over distances larger than the optical skin depth. The nonequilibrium diffusion equations governing stress generation are nonlinear, and are solved numerically. Using a linearized formulation, we also solve them analytically to a good approximation. The acoustic strain profile provides a `snapshot' of the initial spatial temperature distribution of the lattice, thus allowing a sensitive probe of the nonequilibrium dynamics of the diffusion. The electron-phonon coupling constant can be estimated directly from the acoustic pulse duration, provided that the sound velocity and thermal conductivity are known. In general, the relaxation and diffusion of carriers is specific to the sample in question, whether metal or semiconductor, suggesting the use of this method for thin film characterization     

Lens design for acoustic microscopy

Design criteria for acoustic microscope lenses are examined with respect to their intended application. Aside from buffer rod material and F-number, the factors influencing the lens design are the critical angle for surface wave excitation, lens illumination, and leak rate of the surface wave on the sample. It is found that the design criteria are different for surface and subsurface examination and that for different applications and materials, different lenses are required for optimum imaging performance. A formalism for evaluating the performance of an acoustic microscope by considering its response in the time domain, both theoretically and experimentally, is presented.     

Recent advances in scanning tomographic acoustic microscopy

We present the recent developments of the Scanning Tomographic Acoustic Microscope (STAM). The STAM was proposed as a method to achieve 3D imaging capability for the Scanning Laser Acoustic Microscope (SLAM). With the addition of a quadrature receiver, the complex scattered wave field can now be detected, and consequently the STAM is capable of subsurface holographic and tomographic imaging. The resolution improvement of the STAM can be attributed directly to the detection of the phase information and the image reconstruction technique. The STAM is sensitive to phase errors in the tomographic projections. In particular, the quadrature phase error and the initial phase error in the complex projections are critical to the tomographic reconstruction process. For multiple-angle tomography, high-precision projection registration and alignment become necessary. By obtaining solutions to these implementation problems, we have succeeded in obtaining images superior to the original SLAM images. In addition, quantitative ultrasonic imaging is possible with the STAM, and a method is presented to image the velocity parameter of simple specimens. With these capabilities, the STAM may become a useful tool for high-resolution subsurface nondestructive evaluation.     

Velocity dispersion of acoustic waves in cancellous bone

Measurement of ultrasonic attenuation and velocity in cancellous bone are being applied to aid diagnosis of women with high fracture risk due to osteoporosis. However, velocity dispersion in cancellous bone has received little attention up to now. The overall goal of this research was to characterize the velocity dispersion of human cancellous bone based on a spectral analysis of ultrasound transmitted through the bone specimens. We have followed a systematic approach, beginning with the investigation of a test material, moving on to the investigation of bone specimens. Particular attention is given to diffraction effect, a potential source of artifacts. Parametric images of phase velocity (measured at the center frequency of the pulse spectrum), slope of attenuation coefficient (dB/cm/MHz) and velocity dispersion were obtained by scanning 15 bone specimens. We have demonstrated that the diffraction effect is negligible in the useful frequency bandwidth, and that the ultrasonic parameters reflect intrinsic acoustic properties of bone tissue. The measured attenuation showed approximately linear behavior over the frequency range 200 to 600 kHz. Velocity dispersion of cancellous bone in the frequency range 200 to 600 kHz was unexpectedly found to be either negative or positive and not correlated with the slope of attenuation coefficient. There was a highly significant correlation between the slope of attenuation coefficient and phase velocity at the center frequency of the spectrum. This behavior contrasts with other biological or nonbiological materials where the local form of the Kramers-Kronig relationship provides accurate prediction of velocity dispersion from the experimental frequency dependent-attenuation for unbounded waves.     

Propagation of acoustic waves in unsaturated porous media

A mathematical model of propagation of acoustic waves in a proous medium saturated with a two-phase mixture is proposed. The mechanism of initiation of slow motion as a result of prolonged nondestructive acoustic action is analyzed. Translated from Inzhenerno-Fizicheskii Zhurnal, Vol. 71, No. 3, pp. 433–440, May–June, 1998.     

Review of shear surface acoustic waves in solids

General considerations about physical reasons for the existence of surface acoustic waves and, in particular, shear surface acoustic waves in solids are presented. The results of calculations for various types of shear surface acoustic waves are described, and corresponding physical explanations are given.     

Hybridization of backward acoustic waves in piezoelectric plates

The phenomenon of hybridization of the backward acoustic waves propagating in a piezoelectric crystal plate has been studied. In an electrically free plate (in particular, of potassium niobate) with a crystal orientation for which a sagittal plane is the symmetry plane, the dispersion curves of backward acoustic waves exhibit points of intersection and hybridization is absent. However, for a small change in the direction of wave propagation, the dispersion curves exhibit “repulsion” and the waves become coupled. The degree of hybridization is quantitatively evaluated in terms of the hybridization coefficient, which is defined as the ratio of the total mutual energy density and the total energy density of the interacting waves. It is demonstrated that the extent of repulsion of the dispersion curves for the interacting waves is determined by the dependence of the hybridization coefficient on the product of the plate thickness and the wave frequency.     

Resonant interaction of acoustic waves in nonequilibrium gases

Nonlinear equations are derived, which describe the evolution of two-dimensional acoustic disturbances in a thermodynamically nonequilibrium gas. The characteristic features of parametric interaction of wave packets in acoustically active media are analyzed. The transmission band under conditions of critical and noncritical matching and the threshold of parametric amplification are determined. Conditions are obtained, under which a giant parametric pulse may form in an acoustically active medium, with the amplitude of this pulse exceeding that of a pumping wave.     

Existence of longitudinal waves in anisotropic poroelastic solids

In anisotropic fluid-saturated porous solids, four waves can propagate along a general phase direction. However, solid particles in different waves may not vibrate in mutually orthogonal directions. In the propagation of each of these waves, the displacement of pore–fluid particles may not be parallel to that of solid particles. The polarization for a wave is the direction of aggregate displacement of the particles of the two constituents of a porous aggregate. These polarizations, for different waves, are not mutually orthogonal. Out of the four waves in anisotropic poroelastic medium, two are termed as quasi-longitudinal waves. The prefix ‘quasi’ refers to their polarization being nearly, but not exactly, parallel to the direction of propagation. The existence of purely longitudinal waves in an anisotropic poroelastic medium is ensured by the stationary characters of two expressions. These expressions involve the elastic (stiffness and coupling) coefficients of a porous aggregate and the components of phase direction. Necessary and sufficient conditions for the existence of longitudinal waves are discussed for different anisotropic symmetries. Conditions are also discussed for the existence of the apparent longitudinal waves, i.e., the propagation of wave motion with the particle displacement parallel to the ray direction instead of the phase direction. A graphical solution of a numerical example is shown to check the existence of these apparent longitudinal waves for general directions of phase propagation.     

Influence of reflected waves from the back surface of thin solid-plate specimen on velocity measurements by line-focus-beam acoustic microscopy

We investigated the velocity measurements of leaky surface acoustic waves (LSAW) by line-focus-beam (LFB) acoustic microscopy of thin specimens for which the waves reflected from the back surface of the specimen (back reflection) must be included in the measurement model. The influence of back reflection resulted in a serious problem in measurement accuracy of the apparent changes of measured velocities. Using several samples of thin synthetic silica glasses, the determination of LSAW velocity affected by the reflected waves and the relationship between the specimen thickness and the apparent velocity change with a periodic frequency interval in the frequency dependence of measured LSAW velocities are discussed in detail. Three useful methods for eliminating that influence are proposed and demonstrated: first, separating the radio frequency (RF) pulsed wave signal from the specimen surface and the pulses reflected from the back surface by reducing the RF pulse width; second, scattering acoustic waves from the roughened back surface; and third, taking the moving average of measured frequency characteristics of LSAW velocities. It is shown that, among these methods, the moving average method is the most useful and effective as a general means to eliminate the influence and to determine intrinsic velocity values because this method needs no specimen process and no system change, and the same conventional V(z) curve measurement and analysis can be employed.     

Conical waves producing longitudinal power flows

A conical electromagnetic wave converging to its axis is studied theoretically. It is demonstrated that the wave produces an intense self-accelerating flow of energy (momentum). Conical waves may find various applications such as in the acceleration of particles, the generation of high-power pencil beams, the transformation of simultaneously written spatial data into a time waveform, the measurement of flow rate, etc. It is noted that conical waves could set the stage for the manifestation of unknown properties of matter.     

Focusing PVDF transducers for acoustic microscopy

A focusing transducer based on a 9-µm thick PVDF foil was fabricated and tested for performance. The transducer operates in the frequency range of 20–160 MHz. For operation at 78 MHz in water, a lateral resolution of 27.5 µm and a vertical resolution of 35 µm have been observed. Acoustic images of a transistor have been obtained with the focusing PVDF transducer.