Nonlinear and linear pressure determination in a two-layer structure: solid crystal - water at GHz frequencies

Determination of acoustic pressures at the frequency of 1 GHz by means of PVDF hydrophones is not possible due to their limited frequency response. Moreover, the size of their active electrodes is by about 3 orders of magnitude greater than the resolution in the acoustic microscopes at such a high frequency. Therefore the authors solved this problem at first in a microscope with the working frequency of 34 MHz using both the numerical and experimental methods. A numerical procedure of nonlinear propagation and transducer power measurements were applied giving in effect the same quantitative results. Therefore the identical numerical procedure was used for the l GHz microscope working in the reflection mode. Many pressure field quantities of the microscope were shown, e.g. the pressure values, distributions of the first, second, third and fourth pressure harmonics in and outside of the focus, pulse distortions and their spectra, the resolutions achieved etc. The obtained information on nonlinear propagation effects in microscopy was previously lacking.