Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 13, 2026

10:21
Evanescent Field Based Photoacoustics: Optical Property Evaluation at Surfaces
Published on: July 26, 2016
12.1K
Exact solution for a photoacoustic wave from a finite-length cylindrical source
Jason Zalev1, Michael C Kolios2
1Seno Medical Instruments, 5253 Prue Road, Suite 315, San Antonio, Texas 78240.
The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America
|April 30, 2015
Summary
Researchers derived an exact solution for photoacoustic waves from a finite cylindrical source. This analytical model precisely describes acoustic wave generation in pulsed photoacoustics, validated against simulations.
Area of Science:
- Physics
- Acoustics
- Optics
- Materials Science
Background:
- Wide-field pulsed photoacoustics utilizes rapid electromagnetic energy deposition to generate acoustic waves in absorbing materials.
- Understanding the precise acoustic wave propagation from defined sources is crucial for quantitative photoacoustic imaging and material characterization.
Purpose of the Study:
- To derive an exact analytical solution for the photoacoustic wave generated by a finite-length solid cylindrical source.
- To provide a benchmark for validating numerical simulations in photoacoustic modeling.
Main Methods:
- Developed an exact analytical solution based on the theory of photoacoustic wave generation.
- Employed known analytic functions and elliptic integrals of canonical form to express the solution.
- Compared the derived analytical solution with results from a finite-element simulation.
Main Results:
- An exact mathematical expression for the photoacoustic wave originating from a finite-length solid cylindrical source was successfully derived.
- The analytical solution accurately models the acoustic wave generation process.
- The derived solution shows good agreement with the finite-element simulation, confirming its validity.
Conclusions:
- The presented exact solution offers a reliable method for analyzing photoacoustic waves from cylindrical sources.
- This work provides a foundational analytical tool for advancing quantitative photoacoustic applications.
- The validated solution enhances the accuracy of photoacoustic modeling and interpretation.
Related Concept Videos
Sound as Pressure Waves
4.9K
Sound waves, which are longitudinal waves, can be modeled as the displacement amplitude varying as a function of the spatial and temporal coordinates. As a column of the medium is displaced, its successive columns are also displaced. As the successive displacements differ relatively, a pressure difference with the surrounding pressure is created. The gauge pressure varies across the medium.
The pressure fluctuation depends on the difference in displacements between the successive points in the...
The pressure fluctuation depends on the difference in displacements between the successive points in the...
4.9K
Standing Waves in a Cavity
1.7K
A household microwave and lasers are examples of standing electromagnetic waves in a cavity. When two conducting metal plates are placed parallel at the nodal planes, it creates a cavity where standing waves are formed. The cavity between the two planes is analogous to a stretched string held at the points x = 0 and x = L. Here, the distance 'L' between the two planes must be an integer multiple of half of the wavelength. The wavelengths that satisfy this condition are given by:
1.7K
Deriving the Speed of Sound in a Liquid
1.1K
As with waves on a string, the speed of sound or a mechanical wave in a fluid depends on the fluid's elastic modulus and inertia. The two relevant physical quantities are the bulk modulus and the density of the material. Indeed, it turns out that the relationship between speed and the bulk modulus and density in fluids is the same as that between the speed and the Young's modulus and density in solids.
The speed of sound in fluids can be derived by considering a mechanical wave...
The speed of sound in fluids can be derived by considering a mechanical wave...
1.1K
Echo
1.2K
The human ear cannot distinguish between two sources of sound if they happen to reach within a specific time interval, typically 0.1 seconds apart. More than this, and they are perceived as separate sources.
Imagine the sound is reflected back to the ears. Assuming that the source is very close to the human, the difference between hearing the two sounds—the emitted sound and the reflected sound—may be more than the minimum time for perceiving distinct sounds. If this is the case,...
Imagine the sound is reflected back to the ears. Assuming that the source is very close to the human, the difference between hearing the two sounds—the emitted sound and the reflected sound—may be more than the minimum time for perceiving distinct sounds. If this is the case,...
1.2K
Sound Waves
13.8K
Sound waves can be thought of as fluctuations in the pressure of a medium through which they propagate. Since the pressure also makes the medium's particles vibrate along its direction of motion, the waves can be modeled as the displacement of the medium's particles from their mean position.
Sound waves are longitudinal in most fluids because fluids cannot sustain any lateral pressure. In solids, however, shear forces help in propagating the disturbance in the lateral direction as well....
Sound waves are longitudinal in most fluids because fluids cannot sustain any lateral pressure. In solids, however, shear forces help in propagating the disturbance in the lateral direction as well....
13.8K
The de Broglie Wavelength
34.8K
In the macroscopic world, objects that are large enough to be seen by the naked eye follow the rules of classical physics. A billiard ball moving on a table will behave like a particle; it will continue traveling in a straight line unless it collides with another ball, or it is acted on by some other force, such as friction. The ball has a well-defined position and velocity or well-defined momentum, p = mv, which is defined by mass m and velocity v at any given moment. This is the typical...
34.8K

