Time-resolved measurements of shock-induced cavitation bubbles in liquids

A novel experimental method for the measurement of cavitation bubble dynamics is presented. The method makes use of a collimated cw HeNe laser beam that is focused onto a photodiode. A cavitation bubble centered in the laser beam leads to refraction and thus changes the diode signal. With sufficient temporal resolution of the measurement, the evolution of the bubble dynamics, and in particular, the collapse, could be well resolved (limitation is only due to diode response and oscilloscope bandwidth). In the present work this is demonstrated with cavitation bubbles generated with high-power nanosecond and femtosecond laser pulses, respectively. Bubble evolution is studied in two different liquids (water and glycerine) and at different temperatures and pressures.