Theoretical computation of acoustic pressure generated by ultrasonic sensors in presence of an interface

DPSM (Distributed Point Source Method) is a computational technique that can be used to model the pressure field generated by ultrasonic acoustic transducers. This technique involves discretization of the transducer face of any geometrical shape, into a number of elemental surface areas. Point sources are placed at the centroids of the elemental surface areas. The strengths of the point sources are proportional to the surface areas. Pressure field at a given point is the cumulative effect of the pressure fields generated by all point sources. The accuracy of the computational technique depends on the sensor surface discretization. In this paper, circular transducers are modeled using the DPSM technique. This technique is applied to calculate the pressure field distribution in non-homogeneous fluids with interface. The nonhomogeneous fluid is composed of two fluid half-spaces with the interface in front of the transducer face parallel or inclined to the transducer face. Pressure fields in both fluids for normal and angular incidence of the ultrasonic beam have been calculated using DPSM technique.