Nondestructive Characterization of Materials Using Laser-Generated Ultrasound

It is recently well recognized that the technique for the one-sided stress wave velocity measurement in structural materials provides measurement in structural materials provides valuable information on the state of the material such as quality, uniformity, location of cracked or damaged area. This technique is especially effective to measure velocities of longitudinal and Rayleigh waves when access to only one surface of structure is possible. However, one of problems for one-sided stress wave velocity measurement is to get consistent and reliable source for the generation of elastic wave. In this study, the laser based surface elastic wave was used to provide consistent and reliable source for the generation of elastic wave into the materials. The velocities of creeping wave and Rayleigh wave in materials were measured by the one-sided technique using laser based surface elastic wave. These wave velocities were compared with bulk wave velocities such as longitudinal wave and shear wave velocities to certify accuracy of measurement. In addition, the mechanical properties such as poisson's ratio and specific modulus(E/p) were calculated with the velocities of surface elastic waves.