Optical measurements of the self-demodulated displacement and its interpretation in terms of radiation pressure

Using a sensitive optical interferometer, the low frequency displacement nonlinearly generated by an ultrasonic tone burst propagating in a liquid is studied. Close to the source, the low frequency displacement contains a quasi-static component, which is affected by diffraction effects farther from the transducer. The experimental setup provides quantitative results, which allow the determination of the nonlinearity parameter of the liquid with a good accuracy. Such measurements are carried out in water and ethanol. Finally, the pressure associated with the low frequency displacement is discussed. Introducing the temporal mean value of the displacement, as already done in lossless solids, the noncumulative part of this second order pressure is associated with the static part of the low frequency displacement. This interpretation leads to extend the definition of the Rayleigh radiation pressure usually introduced for a continuous plane wave radiated in a confined fluid.     

Beam profile measurements and simulations for ultrasonic transducers operating in air

This paper outlines a method that has been implemented to predict and measure the acoustic radiation generated by ultrasonic transducers operating into air in continuous wave mode. Commencing with both arbitrary surface displacement data and radiating aperture, the transmitted pressure beam profile is obtained and includes simulation of propagation channel attenuation and where necessary, the directional response of any ultrasonic receiver. The surface displacement data may be derived directly, from laser measurement of the vibrating surface, or indirectly, from finite element modeling of the transducer configuration. To validate the approach and to provide experimental measurement of transducer beam profiles, a vibration-free, draft-proof scanning system that has been installed within an environmentally controlled laboratory is described. A comparison of experimental and simulated results for piezoelectric composite, piezoelectric polymer, and electrostatic transducers is then presented to demonstrate some quite different airborne ultrasonic beam-profile characteristics. Good agreement between theory and experiment is obtained. The results are compared with those expected from a classical aperture diffraction approach and the reasons for any significant differences are explained.     

The measurement of peak acoustic intensity generated by pulsed ultrasonic equipment

The peak acoustic intensity generated by pulsed ultrasonic equipment is calculated from measurement of the transmitted acoustic pulse by a calibrated, small, high frequency transducer. The average acoustic output is then computed from the intensity waveform, the beamwidth and the pulse repetition rate. Alternatively, the acoustic pulse may be measured by an uncalibrated transducer and the intensity is then computed from the average acoustic output.     

Experimental study in correlation variation of acoustic propagation channel in Philippine sea

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Nonperturbing measurements of spatially distributed underwater acoustic fields using a scanning laser Doppler vibrometer

Localized changes in the density of water induced by the presence of an acoustic field cause perturbations in the localized refractive index. This relationship has given rise to a number of nonperturbing optical metrology techniques for recording measurement parameters from underwater acoustic fields. A method that has been recently developed involves the use of a Laser Doppler Vibrometer (LDV) targeted at a fixed, nonvibrating, plate through an underwater acoustic field. Measurements of the rate of change of optical pathlength along a line section enable the identification of the temporal and frequency characteristics of the acoustic wave front. This approach has been extended through the use of a scanning LDV, which facilitates the measurement of a range of spatially distributed parameters. A mathematical model is presented that relates the distribution of pressure amplitude and phase in a planar wave front with the rate of change of optical pathlength measured by the LDV along a specifically orientated laser line section. Measurements of a 1 MHz acoustic tone burst generated by a focused transducer are described and the results presented. Graphical depictions of the acoustic power and phase distribution recorded by the LDV are shown, together with images representing time history during the acoustic wave propagation.     

Detection of moving objects and flows in liquids by ultrasonic phase conjugation

The possibility for the application of the method of parametric phase conjugation of ultrasonic waves in measuring the velocity of moving objects and flows is investigated. Results of experimental measurements of the Doppler frequency shift are presented for a low-frequency wave (1 MHz) generated by phase-conjugate waves (10 MHz and 11 MHz) propagating in opposite directions in the presence of a moving scatterer. The super high sensitivity of the phase of the low-frequency wave to variations in the spatial position of the scatterer is used to measure the velocity of the object. The presence of flows in the region of propagation of phase-conjugate waves returned leads to an uncompensated Doppler shift of the phase of the phase-conjugate wave at the primary radiation source. The implementation of this feature of ultrasonic phase conjugation for the detection and measurement of the flow velocities in a liquid is demonstrated experimentally.     

利用PVDF传感器检测激光超声的实验研究

简要介绍了激光超声技术以及声表面波的基本特点、激光超声产生和接收的基本原理及激光超声技术的应用。概述了聚偏二氟乙烯（PVDF）压电薄膜材料的结构、性质和应用，以及薄膜压电性产生的机理。对PVDF换能器的设计思路和实验方法进行了简单讨论。具体实验采用脉冲激光器激发声表面波，利用PVDF传感器接收实验信号，调试实验信号，得出波形，并对实验现象作出初步分析。证实了该实验装置应用于激光超声无损检测的可行性与可靠性。     

Analytical one-dimensional model for laser-induced ultrasound in planar optically absorbing layer

Ultrasound generated by means of laser-based photoacoustic principles are in common use today and applications can be found both in biomedical diagnostics, non-destructive testing and materials characterisation. For certain measurement applications it could be beneficial to shape the generated ultrasound regarding spectral properties and temporal profile. To address this, we studied the generation and propagation of laser-induced ultrasound in a planar, layered structure. We derived an analytical expression for the induced pressure wave, including different physical and optical properties of each layer. A Laplace transform approach was employed in analytically solving the resulting set of photoacoustic wave equations. The results correspond to simulations and were compared to experimental results. To enable the comparison between recorded voltage from the experiments and the calculated pressure we employed a system identification procedure based on physical properties of the ultrasonic transducer to convert the calculated acoustic pressure to voltages. We found reasonable agreement between experimentally obtained voltages and the voltages determined from the calculated acoustic pressure, for the samples studied. The system identification procedure was found to be unstable, however, possibly from violations of material isotropy assumptions by film adhesives and coatings in the experiment. The presented analytical model can serve as a basis when addressing the inverse problem of shaping an acoustic pulse from absorption of a laser pulse in a planar layered structure of elastic materials.     

Nonlinear elastodynamics in micro-inhomogeneous solids observed by head-wave based dynamic acoustoelastic testing

Dynamic acoustoelastic testing provides a more complete insight into the acoustic nonlinearity exhibited by micro-inhomogeneous media like granular and cracked materials. This method consists of measuring time of flight and energy modulations of pulsed ultrasonic waves induced by a low-frequency standing wave. Here pulsed ultrasonic head waves were employed to assess elastic and dissipative nonlinearities in a region near the surface of a solid. Synchronization of the ultrasound pulse sequence with the low-frequency excitation provided instantaneous variations in the elastic modulus and the attenuation as functions of the instantaneous low-frequency strain. Weak quadratic elastic nonlinearity and no dissipative nonlinearity were detected in duralumin. In limestone, distinction between tensile and compressive behaviors revealed an asymmetry in the acoustic nonlinearity and hysteresis in both the elastic modulus and the attenuation variations. Measured nonlinear acoustical parameters are in good agreement with values obtained by different techniques. Reversible acoustically induced conditioning modified the acoustic nonlinearity both quantitatively and qualitatively. It reduced tension-compression asymmetry, suggesting a nonequilibrium modification of the sources of acoustic nonlinearity. Additionally to the metrology of the acoustic nonlinearity, head wave based dynamic acoustoelastic testing may be a useful tool to monitor changes in the microstructure or the accumulation of damage in solids.     

The elastic microstructure of various tissues

Previous work has indicated that a modified Quate-Lemons scanning acoustic microscope (SAM) is capable of measuring the acoustic propagation properties of sections of biological tissue. The lens is excited by an impulse, rather than a tone burst, and the undemodulated returning signal from the tissue is recorded. The variations in received signal with time are used to deduce the sound speed, attenuation, impedance, and section thickness. In this article, the technique is applied to various types of tissue, and the variations in acoustic propagation properties are computed. Conventional tone burst SAM images at 425 MHz are compared with the time resolved data in order to elucidate the contrast mechanisms. The effects of varying the frequency and position of the focal plane on the tone burst images are interpreted in the light of the broadband results.     

Determination of object resonances by vibro-acoustography and their associated modes

Vibro-acoustography technique known by its noncontact excitation was used to detect resonance frequencies of objects in water. Two intersecting ultrasound beams generated by a 40 mm-diameter annular array transducer, focused at 35 mm and driven at f1=2.2 MHz and f2=2.22 MHz respectively, were targeted inside the object under test to produce a radiation force beating at the difference frequency f2-f1. This low frequency radiation force was used to excite the resonance vibration modes of the object by sweeping the frequency f2 between 2.22 and 2.275 MHz. The amplitude of the acoustic emission produced by the vibrations of the object was detected by a low frequency hydrophone (BW=60 kHz). By this approach, it was possible to detect resonance frequencies through amplitude variations of the measured acoustic emission. Experiments were conducted in a water tank for objects of different shapes and sizes. With a chalk sphere (15 mm-diameter) two resonance frequencies were detected at 45.75 and 68.75 kHz, and with a cylinder (10.38 mm-diameter and 32.20 mm-length) four principal resonance frequencies were identified in the 60 kHz-bandwidth of the hydrophone. It was shown with finite element calculations performed with Ansys, in which both solid and fluid parts were modelled, that the measured resonance frequencies corresponded to compressional or dilatation vibration modes of the object. It was verified that shear waves generated by torsional vibration modes were not propagated in water, as it is well known. The use of this technique to characterize heterogeneities in different media seems to be relatively more advantageous to other ultrasonic methods.     

Wideband high-frequency line-focus PVDF transducer for materials characterization

This paper presents the design, fabrication, operating characteristics and applications of a wideband, high-frequency, line-focus beam transducer we constructed using a 9 microm thick piezoelectric polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) film. This transducer possesses a focal length of 2.38 mm and an aperture angle of 84 degrees. The frequency spectrum of the signal measured at the focal point indicates that the transducer has a wide frequency response which extends from 10 MHz to over 100 MHz. When compensated for the frequency-dependent attenuation of the coupling medium, the operational frequency exceeds 150 MHz. The transducer can be operated in a time-resolved pulse mode or in a radio-frequency (rf) tone burst mode. An application of the transducer to determine the anisotropic elastic property of a silicon wafer is demonstrated. The phase velocities of surface acoustic waves (SAW) propagating along various directions on the (001) surface of cubic silicon are measured and compared to computed values.     

用压电聚合物构成的单极性声脉冲发生器

本文介绍了用阶跃电压的快速下降沿作用在PVDF压电膜上而产生的单极性声脉冲。实验结果表明，声脉冲的波形和脉冲宽度取决于PVDF压电膜的厚度，阶跃电压的下降沿宽度，以及背衬材料和声传播媒质的形状等多个因素。该声脉冲发生器所产生的压力波脉冲的宽度约为50ns，不仅适用于固体中空间电荷的测量，也可以用于其他方面的应用，例如超声医学诊断，对材料的非破坏性的检测等。文章以该声脉冲发生器在压电压力波中的应用为例进行论述，并且所有测量结果都是通过压电压力波测试系统获得的。     

Internal deformation of a uniform elastic solid by acoustic radiation force

Tissue elasticity estimation is a growing area of ultrasound research. One proposed approach would apply acoustic radiation force to displace tissue and use ultrasonic motion tracking techniques to measure the resultant displacement. Such a technique might allow noninvasive imaging of tissue elastic properties. The potential of this method will be limited by the magnitude of displacements which can be generated at reasonable acoustic intensity levels. This paper presents methods for estimating the internal displacements induced in an elastic solid by acoustic radiation force. These methods predict displacements on the order of 400 microns in the human vitreous body, 0.008 micron in human breast, and 0.020 micron in human liver at an acoustic intensity of 1.0 W/cm2 (in water) and an operating frequency of 10 MHz. While the displacement generated in the vitreous should be readily detectable using ultrasonic methods, the displacements generated in the breast and liver will be much more difficult to detect. Methods are also developed for predicting the time dependent temperature increases associated with attenuated acoustic fields in the absence of perfusion. These results indicate promise for radiation force imaging in the vitreous, but potential difficulties in applying these techniques in other parts of the body.     

A new type of high power composite ultrasonic transducer

A new type of high power composite ultrasonic transducer was proposed and studied. The composite transducer consists of a sandwich longitudinal piezoelectric transducer, an isotropic metal hollow cylinder with large radial dimension, and the front and back metal radiation mass. By means of its special structure and Poisson’s effect, the composite transducer can produce vibrations both in its longitudinal and radial directions, and therefore, it can radiate sound waves in three-dimensional space. The electro-mechanical equivalent circuit of the composite transducer was derived and the resonance frequency equation was obtained analytically. Numerical methods were used to simulate the vibration of the composite transducer, and the vibrational displacement distribution, the resonance frequency and the radiation sound field are given. Some composite transducers are designed and manufactured; their resonance frequencies and the radiation acoustic field are measured and compared with the analytical and numerical results. It can be seen that the measured frequencies and acoustic field contour are in good agreement with the analytical and numerical results. It is expected that this kind of composite ultrasonic transducer can be used in more and more power ultrasonic applications, such as ultrasonic cleaning, ultrasonic extraction, ultrasonic sonochemistry and other ultrasonic liquid processing, where high ultrasonic power and large ultrasonic processing space are needed increasingly.     

Coherent Brillouin spectroscopy in a strongly scattering liquid by picosecond ultrasonics

In a modification of a picosecond ultrasonic technique, a short acoustic pulse is launched into a liquid sample by a laser pulse absorbed in a semitransparent transducer film and is detected via coherent Brillouin scattering of a time-delayed probe pulse. With both excitation and probing performed from the transducer side, the arrangement is suitable for in vivo study of biological tissues. The signal is collected from a micrometer-thick layer next to the transducer and is not affected by the diffuse scattering of probe light deeper in the sample. The setup, utilizing a 33 nm thick single crystal SrRuO(3) transducer film, is tested on a full fat milk sample, with 11 GHz acoustic frequency recorded.     

Monitoring of temperature variation in the focal region of an ultrasonic transducer

A method for remote monitoring of temperature in the focal region of a high-intensity ultrasonic transducer is described. Results of measurements and theoretical simulation are presented. The measurements were conducted on a polymer sample with thermophysical and acoustic parameters close to the properties of a soft biological tissue. The sample was heated by a focused piezoelectric transducer with different values of radiation power. The delay of a probe pulse transmitted through the heated region perpendicularly to the axis of the intense ultrasonic beam was detected. The local character of temperature measurements was provided by focusing the probe pulse at the heated region. The application of an additional transducer installed confocally with the probing one provided an opportunity to enhance the precision of measurements. An analysis was conducted on the basis of a numerical solution of the heat conduction equation. The function of thermal sources in the heat conduction equation was calculated according to the results of measuring the pressure distribution in the focal region of the heating transducer. The experimental data obtained agree well with the results of simulation and demonstrate a fundamental possibility of using the proposed ultrasonic technique for remote temperature measurements.     

A combined parabolic-integral equation approach to the acoustic simulation of vibro-acoustic imaging

This paper aims to model ultrasound vibro-acoustography to improve our understanding of the underlying physics of the technique thus facilitating the collection of better images. Ultrasound vibro-acoustography is a novel imaging technique combining the resolution of high-frequency imaging with the clean (speckle-free) images obtained with lower frequency techniques. The challenge in modeling such an experiment is in the variety of scales important to the final image. In contrast to other approaches for modeling such problems, we break the experiment into three parts: high-frequency propagation, non-linear interaction and the propagation of the low-frequency acoustic emission. We then apply different modeling strategies to each part. For the high-frequency propagation we choose a parabolic approximation as the field has a strong preferred direction and small propagation angles. The non-linear interaction is calculated directly with Fourier methods for computing derivatives. Because of the low-frequency omnidirectional nature of the acoustic emission field and the piecewise constant medium we model the low-frequency field with a surface integral approach. We use our model to compare with experimental data and to visualize the relevant fields at points in the experiment where laboratory data is difficult to collect, in particular the source of the low-frequency field. To simulate experimental conditions we perform the simulations with the two frequencies 3 and 3.05 MHz with an inclusion of varying velocity submerged in water.     

超声换能器辐射特性的优化*

匹配层和背衬层是换能器的重要组成部分,对换能器特性有重要影响。针对发射型换能器,基于有/无匹配层和空气/树脂背衬两种条件组合,该文研究了匹配层与背衬层对换能器辐射特性的影响。结果表明,负载材料为水时,空气背衬换能器相较于树脂背衬换能器声能辐射效率更高;匹配层可以提高换能器的主瓣能量,抑制旁瓣能量及旁瓣数量。因此,针对发射型换能器的设计,背衬材料的选择应遵循与压电材料的阻抗差异越大越优的原则;匹配层的合理设计不仅可以提高超声换能器的声能辐射效率,还可以提高主瓣旁瓣峰值比,使声能更集中。