Exploring the wave physics of mesoscopic materials with ultrasound: from bubble metamaterials to mesoglasses

Condensed Matter Seminars

Speaker: John H. Page, Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Manitoba
Date & Time: Thu, 2017-09-21 14:00 - 15:00
Location: AMPEL #311
Local Contact: Alireza Nojeh
Intended Audience:

Waves in complex media are often strongly scattered due to mesoscopic heterogeneities, leading to unusual and fascinating phenomena which continue to challenge our basic understanding of wave physics.  Ultrasonic techniques are well suited for investigating such phenomena since complete information about wave propagation (both amplitude and phase, in both time and space) can be measured directly in samples with well controlled internal structures.  After an introduction to some of the general features of ultrasonic wave transport in both ordered and disordered mesoscopic materials (e.g., phononic crystals, acoustic metamaterials and “mesoglasses”), I will focus on our recent progress in investigating the elusive phenomenon of Anderson localization of classical waves in three-dimensional disordered materials.  This work is making it possible to study aspects of classical wave localization that had not previously been amenable to experimental investigation, and is contributing to the current resurgence of interest in localization across several domains of physics.