Thermoelastic finite element modeling of laser generation ultrasound

Thermoelastic finite element modeling of laser-generated ultrasound in aluminum plates is presented based on a numerical formulation for the transient response in terms of the characteristics of the source of the thermoelastic waves. The model accounts for the effects of thermal diffusion, as well as the finite width and duration of the laser source. The stress can be related to the laser energy and material properties. The numerical results indicate that the temperature dependence of the thermophysical parameters has a significant influence on the laser-generated surface-acoustic waves with high frequencies. (c) 2006 American Institute of Physics.