SEARCH AIP Search Physics News Graphics: The Sonoluminescence Process The Soluminescence Process. Sonoluminescence is the conversion of sound into light. Ultrasonic waves are aimed at an air bubble in a small water cylinder. The sound waves cause the bubble to oscillate furiously: (a) the bubble starts out at a size around 5 microns (millionths of a meter); (b) then it expands to a maximum size (not to scale) of about 50 microns. At this large size there is a near-vacuum inside the bubble because of the relatively few air molecules present. This low-pressure near-vacuum region is surrounded outside the bubble by a much higher-pressure region, which causes (c) a catastrophic collapse of the bubble to between 0.1 and 1 microns. During this compression phase a flash of light (d) emerges from the bubble. (By Malcolm Tarlton, American Institute of Physics). Link to Physics News Preview on the movie "Chain Reaction" Back to Physics News Graphics Main Page | |
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