Measurement of Pulse Width from a Bubble Cloud under Multibubble Sonoluminescence Conditions

Abstract

The pulse width from a bubble cloud under multibubble sonoluminescence (MBSL) conditions was measured for the first time using a time-correlated single photon counting technique (TC/SPC). The measured pulse width from several thousand bubbles in water was approximately 250.9 ps, with scattered pulses occurring 1.5 ns before and after the maximum light pulse intensity. The observed pulse width from a bubble cloud, which appears to be comparable to that of the single bubble sonoluminescence, indicates that the clouds of bubbles collapse simultaneous to emitting a light that is synchronized with the applied ultrasound. Also, pulse widths from clouds of multibubbles in water–surfactant and water–alcohol solutions were measured to investigate the surfactant and alcohol effect on the sonoluminescence intensity and pulse width. Size distribution of the bubble cloud at the multibubble conditions was also measured by phase-Doppler technique.