Acoustic Beaming (P-0215) (MFN 3557)

Abstract

The prospect of acoustic beaming is analogous to LASER, in which the light waves are made to have intensity only in a certain direction. The sound (acoustic) waves travel in the form of alternating compression and rarefactions in a medium; thus is a mechanical wave. To create an intense beam of sound in a certain direction, its wave structure is employed by creating destructive and constructive interference which would correspond to destructive where sound wave is not desired and constructive where desired. This requires close control of phase of multiple waves incident on a point and appropriately employs nonlinearity property of air. The design uses minimal number of acoustic transducers to create a beam in only one direction.