Detection of laser-induced nanosecond ultrasonic pulses in metals using a pancake coil and a piezoelectric sensor

A piezoelectric sensor and a pancake coil sensor were used for broadband detection of laser-induced ultrasound in single-crystal aluminum and polycrystalline nickel. Pressure pulses with pronounced compression phases were induced by laser pulses of 5 ns duration from one side of the specimens and detected from the opposite side. A coupling layer of water was required for the piezoelectric method, whereas the pancake coil placed in the biasing permanent field of a cylindrical magnet ~0.25 T allowed noncontact detection. The signals detected by a piezoelectric transducer showed bipolar form and their spectra covered the range from 5 to 90 MHz. The signal measured in aluminum by a pancake coil was assigned to the eddy current sources and had single polarity. The peak-to-peak value of the signal in nickel was higher and had bipolar form because of the inverse magnetostrictive effect. The high-frequency limit detected by the pancake coil approached 200 MHz.