Low-power, cylindrical, air-coupled acoustic levitation/concentration devices: Symmetry breaking of the levitation volume

Abstract

A cylindrical acoustic device for levitation and/or concentration of aerosols and small liquid/solid samples (up to several millimeters in diameter) in air has been developed [Kaduchak et al., Rev. Sci. Instrum. 73, 1332–1336]. It is inexpensive, low-power, and, in its simplest embodiment, does not require accurate alignment of a resonant cavity. It is constructed from a cylindrical PZT tube with thickness-to-radius ratio h/a∼0.03. The novelty of the device is that the lowest-order breathing mode of the tube is tuned to match a resonant mode of the interior air-filled cylindrical cavity. A high-Q cavity results that is driven very efficiently; drops of water in excess of 1-mm diameter are levitated for approximately 100 mW of input electrical power. The present research addresses modifying the different spatial configurations of the standing wave field within the cavity. By breaking the cylindrical symmetry, it is shown that pressure nodes can be localized for collection or separation of aerosolds or other particulate matter. Several different symmetry-breaking configurations are demonstrated. It is shown that experimental observations of the nodal arrangements agree with theoretical predictions.