ultrasonics

ultrasonics, vibrations of frequencies greater than the upper limit of the audible range for humans—that is, greater than about 20 kilohertz. The term sonic is applied to ultrasound waves of very high amplitudes. Hypersound, sometimes called praetersound or microsound, is sound waves of frequencies greater than 10¹³ hertz. At such high frequencies it is very difficult for a sound wave to propagate efficiently; indeed, above a frequency of about 1.25 × 10¹³ hertz it is impossible for longitudinal waves to propagate at all, even in a liquid or a solid, because the molecules of the material in which the waves are traveling cannot pass the vibration along rapidly enough.

Many animals have the ability to hear sounds in the human ultrasonic frequency range. A presumed sensitivity of roaches and rodents to frequencies in the 40 kilohertz region has led to the manufacture of “pest controllers” that emit loud sounds in that frequency range to drive the pests away, but they do not appear to work as advertised.

Some ranges of hearing for mammals and insects are compared with those of humans in the table.

Transducers

An ultrasonic transducer is a device used to convert some other type of energy into an ultrasonic vibration. There are several basic types, classified by the energy source and by the medium into which the waves are being generated. Mechanical devices include gas-driven, or pneumatic, transducers such as whistles as well as liquid-driven transducers such as hydrodynamic oscillators and vibrating blades. These devices, limited to low ultrasonic frequencies, have a number of industrial applications, including drying, ultrasonic cleaning, and injection of fuel oil into burners. Electromechanical transducers are far more versatile and include piezoelectric and magnetostrictive devices. A magnetostrictive transducer makes use of a type of magnetic material in which an applied oscillating magnetic field squeezes the atoms of the material together, creating a periodic change in the length of the material and thus producing a high-frequency mechanical vibration. Magnetostrictive transducers are used primarily in the lower frequency ranges and are common in ultrasonic cleaners and ultrasonic machining applications.

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By far the most popular and versatile type of ultrasonic transducer is the piezoelectric crystal, which converts an oscillating electric field applied to the crystal into a mechanical vibration. Piezoelectric crystals include quartz, Rochelle salt, and certain types of ceramic. Piezoelectric transducers are readily employed over the entire frequency range and at all output levels. Particular shapes can be chosen for particular applications. For example, a disc shape provides a plane ultrasonic wave, while curving the radiating surface in a slightly concave or bowl shape creates an ultrasonic wave that will focus at a specific point.

Piezoelectric and magnetostrictive transducers also are employed as ultrasonic receivers, picking up an ultrasonic vibration and converting it into an electrical oscillation.

Applications in research

One of the important areas of scientific study in which ultrasonics has had an enormous impact is cavitation. When water is boiled, bubbles form at the bottom of the container, rise in the water, and then collapse, leading to the sound of the boiling water. The boiling process and the resulting sounds have intrigued people since they were first observed, and they were the object of considerable research and calculation by the British physicists Osborne Reynolds and Lord Rayleigh, who applied the term cavitation to the process of formation of bubbles. Because an ultrasonic wave can be used carefully to control cavitation, ultrasound has been a useful tool in the investigation of the process. The study of cavitation has also provided important information on intermolecular forces.

Research is being carried out on aspects of the cavitation process and its applications. A contemporary subject of research involves emission of light as the cavity produced by a high-intensity ultrasonic wave collapses. This effect, called sonoluminescence, can create instantaneous temperatures hotter than the surface of the Sun.

The speed of propagation of an ultrasonic wave is strongly dependent on the viscosity of the medium. This property can be a useful tool in investigating the viscosity of materials. Because the various parts of a living cell are distinguished by differing viscosities, acoustical microscopy can make use of this property of cells to “see” into living cells, as will be discussed below in Medical applications.