Some Acoustic Phenomena Related to Curved Surfaces,

Abstract

In the first part of the dissertation, the successive reflections of a spherical front inside a circular cylindrical enclosure are considered. The spherical front is centered on the axis of the cylinder. The reflecting surface is assumed to be perfectly rigid. A geometrical acoustics study of the reflected field is given, together with its limitations. Using an integral representation of the solution for the reflected field, it is then shown how one can obtain the geometry of the successive reflected fronts, together with the amplitude and phase of the reflected signal in the neighborhood of the fronts. The 'radial focusing effect' is studied. It is also proved that, if the reflected fronts seem to emanate from a set of ring sources, these are not images in the ordinary sense of the term. In the second part, independent from the first one, the 'whispering gallery phenomenon' is considered for the vase of a spherical enclosure. Using an asymptotic expansion method, it is shown how a whispering signal may propagate along the wall of the enclosure, either along great circles in an axisymmetric way, or along one great circle only. A comparison is made with the solution obtained by using the normal modes method. Some comments are made about the difficulty of studying the 'forced modes,' i.e., the whispering signal when a source is present. (Author)

Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Sep 01, 1971
Accession Number
AD0732041

Entities

People

  • Jean-francois Hamet

Organizations

  • University of California, Los Angeles

Tags

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Acoustic Phenomena
  • Acoustics
  • Amplitude
  • Asymptotic Series
  • Axisymmetric
  • Geometry
  • Images
  • Integrals
  • Mathematics
  • Physics
  • Reflection
  • Theses

Fields of Study

  • Mathematics

Readers

  • Electromagnetic Wave Scattering and Antenna Radiation Engineering
  • Fluid Dynamics.
  • Wave Propagation and Nonlinear Chaotic Dynamics.