Andreas Skupin

The penetration of acoustic cavitation bubbles into micrometer-scale cavities

The penetration of acoustically induced cavitation bubbles in micrometer-scale cavities is investigated experimentally by means of high-speed photography and acoustic measurements. Micrometer-scale cavities of different dimensions (width=40 μm, 80 μm, 10 mm and depth=50 μm) are designed to replicate the cross section of microvias in a PCB. The aim here is to present a method for enhancing mass transfer due to the penetration of bubbles in such narrow geometries under the action of ultrasound. The micrometer-scale cavities are placed in a test-cell filled with water and subjected to an ultrasound excitation at 75 kHz. A cavitation bubble cluster is generated at the mouth of the cavity which acts as a continuous source of bubbles that penetrate into the cavity. The radial oscillation characteristics and translation of these bubbles are investigated in detail here. It is observed that the bubbles arrange themselves into streamer-like structures inside the cavity. Parameters such as bubble population and size distribution and their correlation with the phase of the incident ultrasound radiation are investigated in detail here. This provides a valuable insight into the dynamics of bubbles in narrow confined spaces. Mass transfer investigations show that fresh liquid can be continuously introduced in the cavities under the action of ultrasound. Our findings may have important consequences in optimizing the filling processes for microvias with high aspect ratios.

High-speed visualization of acoustically excited cavitation bubbles in a cluster near a rigid boundary

In the present work, high-speed visualizations at one million frames/s have been used to study the oscillation characteristics of acoustic cavitation bubbles. The bubbles are generated by acoustic cavitation using an ultrasound transducer with an excitation frequency of 75 kHz near a rigid surface and the medium used is deionized water. The cavitation bubbles tend to collect in clusters near solid boundaries, where they are visualized using a high-speed camera. The collective oscillations give rise to many interesting phenomena like bubble collapse, coalescence, fragmentation and bubble translation. The image sequences provided here contribute to the better understanding of the entire lifecycle of acoustic cavitation bubbles.Graphical abstract