Stress wave propagation when the elastic coefficients vary with depth

Abstract

Of concern is the propagation of distortionless surface waves in a medium that may be nonuniform relative to depth. Distortionless wave propagation in inhomogeneous media was discussed by V. Burke, R. J. Duffin and D. Hazony, inQuart. Appl. Math., 183–194 (1976). Accordingly, the media could be modeled by a distributed electrical ladder network, nonuniform along the axis. We give a two-dimensional development based on Hooke's law and Newton's law which leads to the well-known case of Rayleigh waves in homogeneous media. It will be seen that the available pool of propagation modes greatly increases when high-pass propagation is included. The emphasis is on media where the elastic coefficients track one another as a function of depth. Special cases are studied in detail showing that as a disturbance travels along the surface, it may assume a broadband phase change, which translates into a shape distortion in the time domain, which is periodic with distance. Applications may be found in acousto-optics, in situ monitoring of elongated bodies, high-frequency SAW filters, microstrips, and any situations where surface waves are used in an environment of high precision or relatively large distances.