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Concept
Surface acoustic wave
Summary
A surface acoustic wave (SAW) is an acoustic wave traveling along the surface of a material exhibiting elasticity, with an amplitude that typically decays exponentially with depth into the material, such that they are confined to a depth of about one wavelength.
SAWs were first explained in 1885 by Lord Rayleigh, who described the surface acoustic mode of propagation and predicted its properties in his classic paper. Named after their discoverer, Rayleigh waves have a longitudinal and a vertical shear component that can couple with any media like additional layers in contact with the surface. This coupling strongly affects the amplitude and velocity of the wave, allowing SAW sensors to directly sense mass and mechanical properties. The term 'Rayleigh waves' is often used synonymously with 'SAWs', although strictly speaking there are multiple types of surface acoustic waves, such as Love waves, which are polarised in the plane of the surface, rather than longitudinal and vertical.
SAWs such as Love and Rayleigh waves tend to propagate for much longer than bulk waves, as they only have to travel in two dimensions, rather than in three. Furthermore, in general they have a lower velocity than their bulk counterparts.
Surface acoustic wave devices provide wide-range of applications with the use of electronic system, including delay lines, filters, correlators and DC to DC converters. The possibilities of these SAW device could provide potential field in radar system, communication systems.
This kind of wave is commonly used in devices called SAW devices in electronic circuits. SAW devices are used as filters, oscillators and transformers, devices that are based on the transduction of acoustic waves. The transduction from electric energy to mechanical energy (in the form of SAWs) is accomplished by the use of piezoelectric materials.
Electronic devices employing SAWs normally use one or more interdigital transducers (IDTs) to convert acoustic waves to electrical signals and vice versa by exploiting the piezoelectric effect of certain materials, like quartz, lithium niobate, lithium tantalate, lanthanum gallium silicate, etc.
Official source
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