Measurement of dynamic and static radiation force on a sphere

Dynamic radiation force from ultrasound has found increasing applications in elasticity imaging methods such as vibro-acoustography. Radiation force that has both static and dynamic components can be produced by interfering two ultrasound beams of slightly different frequencies. This paper presents a method to measure both static and dynamic components of the radiation force on a sphere suspended by thin threads in water. Due to ultrasound radiation force, the sphere deflects to an equilibrant position and vibrates around it. The static radiation force is estimated from the deflection of the sphere. The dynamic radiation force is estimated from the calculated radiation impedance of the sphere and its vibration speed measured by a laser vibrometer. Experimental results on spheres of different size, vibrated at various frequencies, confirm the theoretical prediction that the dynamic and static radiation force on a sphere have approximately equal magnitudes [G. T. Silva et al., Phys. Rev. E 71, 056617 (2005)].