Low-frequency underwater sound absorption of hybrid metamaterials using dissipative slow-sound

Abstract

In this work, a hybrid metamaterial is proposed as a new type of underwater absorber, which is composed of carefully designed periodically arranged units. Each unit consists of a perforated panel, a water chamber and a coiled water channel coated with rubber on the channel walls. The coiled channel is designed to reduce the thickness of the structure. The introduction of the rubber coating changes the boundary condition of the coiled channel from rigid to non-rigid, resulting in dissipative slow-sound propagation in the coiled channel. The slow-sound propagation leads to the decrease of resonant frequency, and its inherent dissipation can consume sound energy, resulting in perfect low-frequency sound absorption at subwavelength thickness. Theoretical and numerical results show that the proposed hybrid metamaterial exhibits more than 99% sound energy absorption at 155 Hz, and the thickness of the structure is only 1/456 of the wavelength of sound wave. This work paves the way for the design of ultrathin underwater low-frequency absorbers.