Visualizing sound waves with schlieren optics

Allen Crockett, and Wolfgang Rueckner

Citation: American Journal of Physics 86, 870 (2018); doi: 10.1119/1.5042245

View online: https://doi.org/10.1119/1.5042245
View Table of Contents: https://aapt.scitation.org/toc/ajp/86/11
Published by the American Association of Physics Teachers

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APPARATUS AND DEMONSTRATION NOTES
The downloaded PDF for any Note in this section contains all the Notes in this section.

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Visualizing sound waves with schlieren optics

Allen Crocketta) and Wolfgang Ruecknerb)
Harvard University Science Center, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138
(Received 12 February 2018; accepted 25 May 2018; corrected 23 October 2018)
Using schlieren optics as a tool to see the invisible, we describe a technique of visualizing traveling
ultrasonic (28 kHz) sound waves in real time. Suitable for lecture demonstration purposes or as an
instructional laboratory experiment, our setup can readily demonstrate the reflection of sound waves
from surfaces, diffraction effects around objects, interference, and standing waves. Additionally, the
incorporation of color filters provides information such as gradient directions and sound wave phase
differences not obtainable with just a white light source. As an example, acoustic standing waves are
analyzed. VC 2018 American Association of Physics Teachers. https://doi.org/10.1119/1.5042245

I. INTRODUCTION refractive index, the greater the deflection of the point light
image resulting in more light passing over the edge of the
Refraction of light due to small changes in the index of wire. Fundamentally, it is changes in the medium’s density
refraction n in air can be made visible with schlieren optics. that are responsible for changes in the refractivity, (n–1). For
There are many possible optical arrangements for schlieren air and other gases, there is a simple linear relationship
systems. We shall only describe our arrangement in this between the refractive index and the gas density, q (Ref. 3)
apparatus note, which is illustrated in Fig. 1. Readers inter-
ested in the various techniques may consult a comprehensive n  1 ¼ kq: (1)
book on the subject by Settles.1
A long focal-length mirror is used to focus a point source k is the refractivity constant. Also known as the Gladstone-
of light onto a thin wire, which acts as a light block. Dale coefficient, k is nearly constant over most of the visible
Positioned closely behind the wire is a camera (Fig. 2), spectrum. Its value for air is approximately 2.3  104
which is focused on objects immediately in front of the mir- m3/kg. The expression for the angular deflection (of the point
ror in the “test area.” If there is a change in the index of light image) by a density gradient, say dq/dx, is given by4
refraction in the air within the test area, the image of the
point light source will be deflected. Deflections are small and dq
d ¼ kL ; (2)
typically several arcseconds.2 If it is deflected past the edge dx
of the wire, the additional light that enters the camera will
appear as streaks of light originating from the area where where k is the Gladstone-Dale coefficient and L is the span
there was a change in the index of refraction; this is the so- of the disturbance in the direction of the optical axis.
called schlieren effect. Changes in air density can be the result of changes in tem-
It is the blocking of the direct light from the point light perature, flow dynamics, differing gases, pressure changes,
source that makes the schlieren effect dramatic; blocking the or any combination of these. One can see convection cur-
direct light produces a dark background in the mirror and rents rising from a warm hand or, alternatively, cold air sink-
only the light bent by inhomogeneous refractive regions in ing from a glass of ice water. The hot air from an ordinary
the air is rendered visible against this dark background. hair dryer has the appearance of exhaust from a jet engine.
Practical considerations in optimizing the schlieren effect Gases other than air are rendered visible. For example, sulfur
will be discussed in Sec. IV. hexafluoride gas (six times denser than air) can be visibly
The brightness of the schlieren effect is proportional to the “poured” from a bottle into a glass. The images are strikingly
magnitude of the change in refractive index of the medium beautiful and never cease to amaze. Students need to be
in which light propagates—the greater the change in acquainted with Snell’s law of refraction and the formation

870 Am. J. Phys. 86 (11), November 2018 http://aapt.org/ajp C 2018 American Association of Physics Teachers
V 870
 Fig. 1. General layout of schlieren experiment (not to scale).

of real images by spherical mirrors to understand the schlie- the technique to be able to visualize traveling ultrasonic
ren technique. It has been a popular lecture demonstration in waves as well.
our classes for many decades. Clearly, sound waves travel at speeds too fast to see in
real time. However, just as one can “freeze” the motion of a
rapidly spinning object with a stroboscope, sound waves can
II. EXPERIMENT OVERVIEW also be rendered motionless with the stroboscopic effect. If
one illuminates the waves with pulses of light at the same
Since sound waves are pressure waves, and pressure varia- frequency as the waves, then the waves will appear to be
tions result in density gradients, one might ask, “Can the standing still. Stroboscopic illumination in conjunction with
schlieren method be used to see audible sound waves?” schlieren optics has been used before in certain applica-
Bershader et al. calculated that a schlieren system with 0.2 tions,7–9 but the optical and electronic instrumentation was
arcseconds sensitivity cannot render 1 kHz sound visible in quite elaborate and sophisticated and not at all appropriate
air without exceeding sound intensities beyond the threshold for lecture demonstrations or instructional laboratories. A
of pain.5 This sensitivity is an order of magnitude greater search of the literature indicates that our experiment is the
than one can normally achieve, so the answer to the above first to show traveling sound waves in air using readily
question is “no” for practical purposes. We present evidence accessible equipment. Apparatus and equipment details are
of both optical and acoustic limits to the practicality of visu- presented in Sec. IV.
alizing sound as a lecture demonstration or as an undergradu-
ate instructional lab.
III. THE DEMONSTRATION EXPERIMENT
In the past year we have combined our schlieren setup
with an acoustic levitation apparatus to actually “see” a A. White light illumination
28 kHz standing wave.6 The rate at which the density
changes in a 28 kHz standing wave is expected to be at least An ultrasonic transducer is set up in front of the mirror,
56 times faster than a 1 kHz traveling wave (since pressure generating 28 kHz sound waves. These are rendered visible
antinodes occur every half-wavelength). Thus, with a modest by pulsing the point light source at the same frequency. The
schlieren sensitivity of 10 arcseconds, one should be able to ultrasound wavefronts appear as bands of light across the
see pressure gradients at this ultrasound frequency. Indeed, width of the mirror. Frozen in space, one can hold a scale in
that is the case. Heartened by this success, we have enhanced front of the mirror to measure the wavelength.
Since we are dealing with traveling waves, it is more satis-
fying to see the waves progress forward rather than remain
motionless. Setting the strobe frequency a few Hz less than
the ultrasound frequency gives the illusion that the waves are
progressing forward; the greater the frequency difference,
the faster the progression rate. For example, if the strobe fre-
quency is 3 Hz less, the slightly longer period between strobe
flashes allows the wavefronts to progress about 4 cm further
each second—a visually appealing progression. One can also
set the strobe frequency to be a few Hz greater than the
ultrasound frequency. The wavefronts then appear to be
moving backwards—instructive and amusing, but not appro-
priate for the following demonstrations to be performed.
The next step is to show that these sound waves behave
just like water waves that students may have already seen in
ripple tank demonstrations. For example, the waves can be
reflected in any direction by simply holding a flat piece of
Fig. 2. Wire light block positioned in front of camera. plastic (or metal or glass) in front of the oncoming waves.

871 Am. J. Phys., Vol. 86, No. 11, November 2018 Apparatus and Demonstration Notes 871
Diffraction of sound waves around the edge and into the
shadow of the reflecting plate is also clearly visible. Images
of these phenomena are shown in Figs. 3 and 4.
The creation of standing waves by the superposition of
two traveling waves is easily shown by reflecting the waves
back on themselves. By moving the reflecting plate just par-
tially into the oncoming waves, students can see waves trav-
eling in both directions. The plate can then be moved in all
the way to completely superimpose the incident and reflected
waves. This usually produces a somewhat crude-looking
standing wave in the sense that one sees hints of it happen-
ing. By carefully adjusting the distance between the
reflecting plate and transducer to be an integral number of
half-wavelengths, the standing wave will become strong and
stable with just one problem: the distance between maxima
is a full wavelength rather than half. Half of the expected
maxima are missing! The reason for this is that we are strob-
ing at the same frequency as the waves with a very short
Fig. 4. Diffraction of sound waves.
pulse of light. This is a sampling issue. Strobing at 56 kHz
reveals the entire standing wave.10 The scale with wave-
length markings can be placed next to the standing wave to
show that the bands of light occur every half-wavelength. red filter is above the green (the relative orientation is
Lastly, the fact that there is a bright band of light right next arbitrary, but must stay fixed throughout the experiment).
to the reflecting plate is consistent with the premise that the Now, if there is a pocket of air in the test area in front of
bands of light correspond to changes in air density. The air the mirror that is less dense than the surrounding air, that
near the surface of the plate undergoes maximal density pocket will behave like a weak diverging lens (recall that
changes: condensation when the pressure is above atmo- light rays are always bent toward the region of higher
sphere and rarefraction when below atmosphere. The bands refractive index, and away from regions of lower refractive
of light occur at pressure antinodes. index). Light rays that were once focused onto the wire
block will thus converge slightly behind it, passing through
the color filters along the way (see Fig. 6). If, on the other
B. Addition of color filters
hand, there is a pocket of air that is denser than the sur-
The white bands of light tell us where there is a density rounding air, it acts like a weak converging lens. Light
gradient in the air, and the brightness of those bands corre- rays will be focused slightly in front of the wire and then
sponds to the magnitude of the gradients, but they do not tell diverge after the focal point, subsequently passing through
us the direction of the gradients. Is the density increasing or the color filters—however, in this case the colors are
decreasing? In other words, the information we obtain from reversed. For example, if the bottom of a hot object
the brightness of the bands of light is simply a scalar quan- appears green, the bottom of a cold object will appear red.
tity. One needs additional information to know the direction The vector aspect of the color schlieren can be beautifully
of the gradients. The incorporation of color can give us that demonstrated by holding a hot object (soldering iron) and
additional information and turn the information gleaned cold object (ice cube tray), side by side, in front of the mirror
from the image into a vector quantity. The next step in the (see Fig. 7). Notice the reversal of colors around the two
demonstration is to show how. objects. As one approaches the hot soldering iron from
We use two narrow strips of color filters,11 butted below, the air next to the iron is less dense and diverges the
together and placed behind the wire block, see Fig. 5. The light rays down through the green filter. Thus, green

Fig. 3. Reflection of sound waves. Fig. 5. Color filters attached to wire light block.

872 Am. J. Phys., Vol. 86, No. 11, November 2018 Apparatus and Demonstration Notes 872
 Fig. 8. Color schlieren image of standing wave.

With color filters in place as described above, and the

strobe frequency set to twice the ultrasound frequency, the
previous bands of white light now appear as alternating
bands of green and red (see Fig. 8). The green and red bands
are separated by a half-wavelength. Recall that a green light
Fig. 6. Illustration of light rays refracted by pockets of different air represents a decrease in air density. That means the air in
densities. that region is changing from a pressure above atmosphere
to a pressure below atmosphere. The red band represents the
corresponds to a decrease in air density. Above the iron, the
opposite: a pressure change from below atmosphere to a
air becomes more dense as we move away from the iron and
pressure above.
light rays passing through that area diverge up through the
Note that since the strobe is synchronized with the trans-
red filter: red corresponds to an increase in air density. The
ducer generating the waves, we always see the same phase
same holds for the cold ice cube tray; approaching the tray
of the standing wave. That is to say, even though the density
from below, one encounters denser air and one sees the color
alternately decreases and increases during one oscillation
red. Above the tray, the density of the air decreases as we
cycle of the standing wave, we only see the first half of the
move away and one sees the color green.
cycle. If we were to see the whole cycle, the band would be
Note that the opposite colors represent these density gra-
a mixture of red and green, becoming an indistinct yellowish
dients if one approaches the objects from above, rather than
below. The spatial gradient is then the negative of that color. Instead, we can adjust the synchronization by adding a
encountered from below.12 The color representations of the 180 phase shift to observe the second half of the cycle.
gradients are defined by the orientation of the color filters. When that is done, the red bands become green and the green
Thus, provided the orientation of the filters is not changed in become red!
Lastly, insert small Styrofoam balls into the standing
an experiment, we now can define gradient directions by col-
wave. They settle into both the red as well as green bands of
ors. Whereas before we could only judge the magnitude of the
density gradient by the brightness (a scalar quantity), we can light, as shown in Fig. 9.
now also deduce whether it is a positive or negative gradient
(vector quantity). Again, the colors that represent these gra- IV. APPARATUS DETAILS
dients are arbitrary and must first be defined by known density
Schlieren sensitivity is conventionally defined as the pro-
gradients (such as the air around a hot object). Only then can
portional change in illumination relative to the undisturbed
one analyze gradients in unknown circumstances. We next
background illumination, as seen by the camera. The
analyze an acoustic standing wave with color information.

Fig. 7. Color schlieren image of hot and cold objects. Fig. 9. Color schlieren image of levitating Styrofoam balls.

873 Am. J. Phys., Vol. 86, No. 11, November 2018 Apparatus and Demonstration Notes 873
background illumination in the mirror is mostly due to the with this small off-axis separation between the illuminator
light coming from the point light source image that is not and analyzer light beams, providing room for a video camera
obstructed by the light block. The point light source is a to be positioned behind the real image of the point light
0.5 mm diameter circular disk, and so is its image. The unob- source. Note that the off-axis distance is very small com-
structed light that passes the light block is thus a segment of pared to the radius of curvature of the mirror (R ¼ 2f) so that,
a circle and the background illumination will be proportional for all practical purposes, the configuration can be thought of
to the area of that segment. An approximate formula for the as a coincident schlieren system as opposed to an off-axis
area, A, is given by A ¼ (2/3)ch, where c is the chord length system.15
and h is the height (sagitta) of the segment.13 When the cir- The area of interest where we wish to see schlieren effects
cular image is deflected, the change in illumination will be lies directly in front of the mirror. The diverging light from
proportional to the change in area, DA. Since the deflection, the point light source and the converging analyzer light
d, is small, the chord length will not change significantly and reflected from the mirror pass through this area. Since the
the increase in area can be approximated by a rectangular test area is traversed twice by the same light ray, the ray will
area, DA  cd. Given these parameters, we can approximate undergo two deflections. This gives an advantage of twice
the proportional change in the illumination, I, and thus the the sensitivity of a single-pass schlieren method and (theoret-
schlieren sensitivity, by ically) an additional factor of 2 in Eq. (3).16 On the other
hand, since one beam is diverging and the other converging,
DI DA d 3ð d2f Þ 3df the two paths through the test area are not identical.
¼ ¼ ¼ ¼ ; (3)
I A ð2=3Þh 2h h Consequently, there is a slight blurring of the image, which
may reduce the resolving power. In practice, this has not
where d is the deflection angle, f is the focal length of the been a problem.
mirror, 2f is the radius of curvature of the mirror (see Fig.
1), and h is the height of the unobstructed light source B. Light source
image.
An accurate determination of the sensitivity can be quite To achieve high sensitivity, the point light source and its
involved as it depends on some parameters and factors in a corresponding image must be small. The reason is simply
nonlinear fashion. Equation (3) is sufficiently accurate for that the deflection of the image is only a fraction of a milli-
our purposes. The three most important factors are mirror meter. If, for example, the light source image is 1.0 mm in
focal length, the size and shape of the point light source and diameter and the image is deflected 0.1 mm, then only 10%
structure of the light block, and the unobstructed height of of the available light from the image enters the camera
the source image. Equation (3) suggests infinite sensitivity as resulting in a relatively weak illumination change. On the
h ! 0. In practice, one cannot eliminate all stray light from other hand, if the point light source image is 0.1 mm in diam-
reaching the mirror and achieve a completely dark back- eter and the maximum image deflection is 0.1 mm, then
ground. Furthermore, diffraction of light around the light 100% of the light from the image passes the light block and
block ultimately limits the sensitivity. one has effectively maximized the dynamic range of light
intensities entering the camera. An increase in dynamic
A. Mirror range gives rise to greater contrast in the schlieren image,
giving rise to higher sensitivity. Of course, as the point light
From Eq. (3), we see that changes in illumination depend source decreases in size, the brightness of the image also
on how much of the point light source image is deflected decreases resulting in poor contrast and low sensitivity. We
past the light block into the camera. Here, we will simply have settled on the following compromise to minimize image
characterize the sensitivity of our apparatus by the distance size and maximize image brightness.
the light is deflected away from the light block due to refrac- The point light source is a 10-watt white LED,17 providing
tion in the test area—the greater the deflection, the greater approximately 700 lumens. To secure even illumination,
the change in illumination. The deflection, d, at the location Vellum translucent film is used to diffuse the light, which
of the light block is d ¼ d2f. The longer the focal length of then passes through a 0.5-mm diameter pinhole. The entire
the mirror, the greater the deflection and change in illumina- assembly is housed inside a 1-in. diameter aluminum tube.
tion—the mirror acts like an optical lever and increases the For continuous operation, a power supply capable of deliver-
sensitivity proportional to its focal length. Note that the ing 14 V at 0.7 A is required. For pulsed operation, it is nec-
deflection is quite small—deflection angles are typically sev- essary to combine a function generator18 with an audio
eral arcseconds. Using a 2-meter focal length mirror, for power amplifier19 to drive the LED.
example, d is approximately 0.1 mm.
Our setup is a single-mirror system.14 Spherical mirrors C. Light block
are ideal for this purpose for the following reason. Suppose
one positions a point light source on the mirror’s optical axis For typical schlieren demonstrations, the image of the
at its center of curvature (a distance equal to twice its focal point light source is focused onto a knife-edge (razor blade).
length). The diverging illuminator light that bathes the mir- This blocks the analyzer beam from entering the camera. If
ror is reflected straight back onto itself (since the radius is there is a change in the index of refraction in the test area
perpendicular to the spherical surface) and forms a real that causes a vertical deflection of the image past the knife-
image superimposed on the point light source. We shall edge, the light that passes over the edge is seen by the cam-
denote the light reflected from the mirror as the analyzer era as coming from the area where there is a change in the
beam. If the point light source is displaced slightly off the index of refraction. A light block oriented horizontally
optical axis, its image will similarly be displaced on the detects only vertical refractive gradients; horizontal changes
opposite side of the axis. The schlieren setup is configured in the index of refraction go undetected, and vice versa, for a

874 Am. J. Phys., Vol. 86, No. 11, November 2018 Apparatus and Demonstration Notes 874
vertically oriented light block. To be able to observe waves for use in lecture demonstrations in real time. Previous
traveling in any direction, one could use a light block ori- experiments involved elaborate and sophisticated electronic
ented 45 with respect to the horizontal. However, only instrumentation. Excepting the mirror, the experiment can be
index gradients that refract light past the edge of the light set up with equipment found in most instructional laborato-
block would be detected. The opposite gradient that refracts ries. It is an engaging application of geometric optics, wave
light further onto the light block goes undetected. To circum- phenomena, and acoustic levitation. As an instructional labo-
vent that problem, we have chosen a thin wire to act as a ratory experiment, the schlieren system is rich in possibilities
light block, as shown in Fig. 2 and described below. and could be explored further as a Fourier optical processor.23
The image of the point light source is focused onto the With the addition of color as a tool, we have shown how
wire, oriented at 45 with respect to the horizontal. The point the schlieren system can be used in a lecture demonstration
light source image size dictates the wire diameter. To secure to analyze the dynamics of a standing wave in acoustic levi-
a dark background in the mirror, one would guess that the tation. The phases of the standing wave are made evident
wire diameter should be the same as the image size. We with the addition of color information. One would not expect
have found that schlieren sensitivity seems to be optimum to see either color since the density gradient continuously
when 90% to 95% of the image is blocked. The image size is oscillates from positive to negative. However, the illumina-
0.5 mm (¼0.0197 in.) and thus we have chosen size 7 (0.018 tion pulse is synced to the transducer and is so short (10 ls)
in. diameter) piano wire. With this geometry, refractions in that only half of the pressure oscillation is captured. The
any direction are detected (refractions parallel to the wire alternating red and green bands of light in the schlieren
being the exception). The ability to detect positive and nega- image are striking. When the illuminating pulse is delayed
tive index gradients improves the overall sensitivity of the by 180 , the reversal of colors is an extra bonus.
schlieren system.
For maximum schlieren sensitivity, it is important to accu- ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
rately focus the point light source onto the wire. This can be
We would like to acknowledge and thank our anonymous
executed visually using the following procedure. Move the
reviewers for their helpful comments and suggestions for
wire into place from the side and observe the image in the
improving the manuscript. A special thank you to David
mirror. If the wire is properly positioned in the image focus Jackson (Dickinson College) for numerous thought
plane, the background illumination in the mirror will uniformly provoking discussions.
dim as the wire is moved in (from the side) to block the light
source image. If the wire is slightly in front of the focus plane
(closer to the mirror), a shadow of the wire will be seen moving
in the opposite direction that the wire is moving. If the wire is APPENDIX: SAFETY CONSIDERATIONS
behind the focus plane (closer to the camera), the shadow will
move in the same direction as the wire. Fine-tune the position There is very little in the literature concerning safety
of the wire along the optical axis so that no shadow appears guidelines for ultrasound. One should not assume that it is
and the background illumination dims uniformly. harmless simply because one cannot hear it. With safety in
mind, we drive the ultrasonic transducer with the minimum
D. Video camera power required to achieve levitation of the small Styrofoam
spheres—approximately 5–8 W.
The specific camera and lens model/manufacturer is not Without recourse to measuring the sound level with a dB
important, but note that, for tight cropping of the schlieren meter designed for ultrasonic frequencies, the following
image, the video camera needs to be equipped with a long measurements were made to determine the ultrasound inten-
focal-length zoom lens (in the 150–300 mm range). We use a sity. An Earthworks M-30 microphone was used to measure
Blackmagic Design Cinema Camera (MFT mount). The the 28 kHz sound level at a distance of 40 cm from the trans-
active region of the sensor is 15.81  8.88 mm, giving it a ducer (the distance one’s ears might be during the experi-
crop factor of about 2.3. For tight shots we use an Asahi ment). According to the spec sheet, the M-30 microphone
Takumar 300 mm f/6.3 lens with a Zhongyi Lens Turbo 2 frequency response is flat (62 dB) up to 30 kHz. The gain of
speed booster. the microphone preamp was adjusted so that the output was
1 Vp-p, as measured on an oscilloscope. A small loudspeaker
E. Ultrasonic transducer was then placed next to the ultrasonic transducer and driven
by an audio generator/amplifier at 1 kHz. A calibrated
The ultrasonic waves are generated by a 28 kHz transducer General Radio model 1551-B Sound Level Meter was posi-
designed for ultrasonic cleaning baths.20 These are typically tioned right next to the Earthworks microphone. The volume
driven by a push-pull oscillator specially designed for this of the 1 kHz signal was then adjusted so that the signal from
application. Many are controlled by an Arduino microcon- the Earthworks microphone/preamp was again 1 Vp-p, as
troller. Ours is driven harmonically, powered by a Samson measured on the oscilloscope. At that volume, the GR Sound
Servo 120 audio power amplifier. The input signal comes Level Meter registered 78 dB—a level considered to be safe.
from a sine wave function generator.21 A homemade imped- Nevertheless, we use hearing protection whenever the trans-
ance matching transformer22 couples the 8 -X output of the ducer is on—safety first!
audio power amplifier to the ultrasonic transducer.
a)
Electronic mail: arcrock@fas.harvard.edu
V. DISCUSSION b)
Electronic mail: ruecknerw@gmail.com
1
G. S. Settles, Schlieren and Shadowgraph Techniques—Visualizing
This experiment is rich in content. First and foremost, it is Phenomena in Transparent Media (Springer-Verlag, Berlin, Heidelberg,
the first time that traveling sound waves have been visualized New York, 2001). The author is one of the leading authorities on the

875 Am. J. Phys., Vol. 86, No. 11, November 2018 Apparatus and Demonstration Notes 875
 13
subject. This is an excellent book that covers the various techniques in J. W. Harris and H. Stocker, “Segment of a circle,” in Handbook of
detail as well as providing a historical background. There is a wealth of Mathematics and Computational Science (Springer-Verlag, New York,
information here with 1020 references. 1998), p. 92, Sec. 3.8.6,. The error is < 0.8% for 0 < h  45 and < 3.3%
2
Reference 1, p. 51. Those well-trained in the schlieren arts recognize the for 45 < h  90.
14
sensitivity level of an image by the type of disturbances it reveals. This is 12.500 diameter, 3.12 m focal length, f/10, protected aluminum mirror
seldom done in terms of refractive-index gradients, but rather ranked in (originally purchased from Edmund Scientific for $600). The company no
terms of the deflection angle, d, in arcseconds. If one can see the warm air longer exists and the closest equivalent is a Techspec Precision Parabolic
generated by rubbing your hands together, this corresponds to d being Mirror available from Edmund Optics, Part No. 32-277-522. When set-up
about 5–10 arcseconds. space is limited, we also have an 1800 diameter, 2 m focal length, f/4.3 mir-
3
Reference 1, p. 26. For gases other than air, k may vary roughly from 1 to ror salvaged from a spectrometer. The longer focal length mirror provides
15 (10-4 m3/kg). greater schlieren sensitivity, but the latter is a higher quality mirror pro-
4
D. Bershader, S. G. Prakash, and G. Huhn, “Improved flow visualization ducing better images. Note that at f/10 or higher, the difference between a
by use of resonant refractivity,” AIAA Paper No. 76–71 of the 14th spherical and parabolic mirror is insignificant for this application and a
Aerospace Sciences Meeting (1976), p. 4. smaller diameter mirror can cost an order of magnitude less than a 1200
5
Reference 4, pp. 3–4. Schlieren sensitivity is directly proportional to the diameter mirror (currently $2500). Many schlieren videos on youtube.com
refractivity constant (Gladstone-Dale coefficient) of the gas. By seeding use 600 mirrors with excellent images.
the air with 0.1 mol % of non-resonant sodium vapor (kNa/ kair  106), the 15
Reference 1, pp. 46–48, for a full explanation of coincident and off-axis
authors improved the sensitivity of their apparatus by a factor of 1000. geometries.
However, it appears that they erred in their calculation of sound overpressure 16
Reference 1, pp. 42–46.
in air: an incorrect value for L made their result too low by a factor of 100. 17
LED Engin LZ4-00CW08 cool white, 1 channel, Standard Star MCPCB.
This makes the prospect of detecting 1 kHz sound waves in air even worse. Forward voltage ¼ 14 V and current ¼ 0.7 A.
6
The video “Ultrasonic Levitation” <http://www.youtube.com/ 18
Pasco model PI 8587C digital function generator and Tektronix Arbitrary
watch?v¼XpNbyfxxkWE> uses Schlieren imaging to show Styrofoam
Function Generator model AFG 1022 are two options we have used. To
balls suspended of an ultrasonic standing wave.
7 secure color schlieren images of the standing wave, the function generator
L. F. Lawrence, S. F. Schmidt, and F. W. Looschen, “A self-synchronizing
must have an external trigger option. The Tektronix generator also has a
stroboscopic schlieren system for the study of unsteady air flows,”
phase shift adjustment, an added plus.
National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics Technical Note 2509 19
Most audio power amplifiers have a flat frequency response (within a deci-
(1951). Developed for the study of air flows about aerodynamic bodies in
bel or so) up to 100 kHz. The power amp should be able to drive a 20-X
wind tunnels, the authors describe a schlieren system having two light
load with a compliance of 3=4 A. We use a McIntosh 30-watt audio ampli-
paths, one of which serves as a reference path with a phototube that trig-
gers a stroboscopic light source for the other path. fier, model MC-30.
20
8
R. A. Kadlec and S. S. Davis, “Visualization of quasiperiodic flows,” American Piezo (www.americanpiezo.com) 28 kHz Cleaning Transducer
AIAA J. 17, 1164–1169 (1979). Kadlec and Davis improved on the model #90-4040. It is a 50 W transducer but, for safety reasons, we operate
Lawrence design (see previous reference) with extra sensors and modern it at a minimum power of around 8 W.
21
flash lamp to freeze wave phenomena and analyze their phase Pasco model 8587C digital function generator.
22
relationships. The core of the transformer consists of two C-shaped pieces of ferrite
9
D. R. Andrews, “Study of wavefronts in acoustic diffraction patterns using which, when put together make a square. The primary is 10 turns of #18
a stroboscopic schlieren technique,” Proc. SPIE 348, 565–570 (1983). wire and the secondary is 100 turns of #22 wire. The inductance of the pri-
Andrews uses the technique to study ultrasonic waves in water (wave- mary is 230 lH w/ secondary open and 16 lH w/ secondary shorted. The
length ¼ 2 mm) at repetition rates in the 200 to 2 kHz range. operational inductance is such that its impedance is well matched to the
10
To prevent drifting, it is useful to synchronize the light pulse generator 8 X output of the amp. The inductance of the secondary is 18.8 mH w/ pri-
with the transducer’s sine wave generator. The Pasco model PI 8587C has mary open and 1.8 mH w/ primary shorted. It’s operational inductance is
a TTL output that can be used as a trigger for the light pulse generator. around 10 mH. The static capacitance of the transducer is 3550 pF. To res-
11 onate at 28 kHz, we want an inductance of 9.1 mH. The inductance of the
Kodak Wratten 2 color filter #29 (red) and #61 (green). These are available
from Kodak Cinema & Television (800) 621-3456. The website is secondary is a close match for that. The output of the transformer can be
motion.kodak.com. as much as 400 Vp-p, but we operate it at approximately 50 Vp-p (the min-
12
Let the positive y-direction be upward. Then, moving upward, a negative imum power to secure levitation).
23
refractive-index gradient would be dn/dy < 0. Moving downward (in the See, for example, E. Hecht, “The spatial distribution of optical
negative y-direction), dy < 0, and thus a negative refractive-index gradient information,” Optics, 2nd ed. (Addison-Wesley, Reading MA, 1987),
becomes 0. Hence the different colors above and below the object. Chap. 14 or Reference 1, pp. 341–352.

876 Am. J. Phys., Vol. 86, No. 11, November 2018 Apparatus and Demonstration Notes 876